Okemah Man Pleads Guilty To Aggravated Sexual Abuse Of A Minor

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Johnny Wayne Harjo Jr., age 41, of Okemah, Oklahoma, entered a guilty plea to Aggravated Sexual Abuse, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1153, 2241(a) and 2246, punishable by a term of imprisonment of any number of years up to life, a fine of up to $250,000.00, or both; and to Sexual Abuse Of A Minor, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1153, 2243(a) and 2246, punishable by up to 15 years imprisonment, up to a $250,000.00 fine, or both.

The Indictment alleged that on or about January 25, 2018, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Indian Country, the defendant, an Indian, did knowingly cause and attempt to cause the victim to engage in and attempt to engage in a sexual act as defined in Title 18, United States Code, Section 2246, to wit, the penetration, however slight, of the genital opening of the victim by a hand or finger and the intentional touching, not through the clothing, of the genitalia of the victim, a person who has not attained the age of 16 years, with an intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person, accomplished by the use of force against the victim. 
                
The Indictment further alleged that on or about January 25, 2018, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Indian Country, the defendant, an Indian, did knowingly engage and attempt to engage in a sexual act as defined in Title 18, United States Code, Section 2246 with the victim, a person who had attained the age of 12 years but had not attained the age of 16 years and was at least four years younger than the defendant, to-wit, the penetration, however slight, of the genital opening of the victim by a hand or finger and the intentional touching, not through the clothing, of the genitalia of the victim, a person who has not attained the age of 16 years, with an intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person.  

The charges arose from an investigation by the Creek Nation Lighthorse Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

The Honorable Kimberly E. West, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report. 

Assistant United States Attorney Sarah McAmis represented the United States.