Lame Deer man sentenced to two years in prison for sexual abuse of a minor

BILLINGS  — A Lame Deer man who admitted to having a sexual relationship with a minor girl was sentenced today to two years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.

Nathan Francis Stops, 42, of Lame Deer, pleaded guilty in September 2022 to sexual abuse of a minor.

U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided. The court allowed Stops to self-report to the Bureau of Prisons.

The government alleged in court documents that in December 2020, on the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, the victim, identified as Jane Doe, who was then age 16, disclosed that she had been having an ongoing sexual relationship with Stops since she was 14 years old. The two had engaged in sexual intercourse on numerous occasions.  Stops denied having sex with Jane Doe but was confronted with forensic testing results indicating sexual intercourse between him and Jane Doe.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the FBI and Bureau of Indian Affairs.

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