Navajo Man Found Guilty of Aggravated Sexual Abuse
| U.S. Attorney’s Office December 02, 2011 |
PHOENIX—Timothy Yazzie, 37, of Winslow, AZ, was found guilty of three counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a minor by a federal jury in Phoenix. The trial before U.S. District Judge Neil V. Wake began on November 29, 2011, and continued through December 1, 2011. The defendant has been detained pending sentencing which is set before Judge Wake on February 27, 2012.
The evidence at trial showed that the defendant used force and threats to coerce a 13-year-old victim to repeatedly engage in sexual intercourse with him.
A conviction for aggravated sexual abuse of a minor carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment. The defendant also could receive a $250,000 fine. In determining an actual sentence, Jude Wake will consult the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide appropriate sentencing ranges. The judge, however, is not bound by those guidelines in determining a sentence.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Navajo Nation Criminal Investigators’ Office. The prosecution was handled by Sharon Sexton and Cassie Woo, District of Arizona, Phoenix.
CASE NUMBER: CR-11-8086-PCT-NVW
RELEASE NUMBER: 2011-268(Yazzie)