Third Armed Robber Pleads Guilty to Holding Up Navajo Nation Trading Post

PHOENIX—Charles Yazzie, 20, of Round Rock Arizona and a member of the Navajo Nation, pleaded guilty today to one count of armed robbery for holding up the Round Rock Trading Post on the Navajo Nation in July 2010.

Yazzie pleaded guilty to armed robbery after he and two co-defendants dressed in black entered the Round Rock Trading Post. One co-defendant wielded a rifle and pointed it at the store owner, who was working behind the counter. Yazzie and the co-defendants demanded cash and cigarettes. Yazzie then fled on horseback with one of his co-defendants. The three defendants took the rifle from the home of Yazzie’s parents without their permission. After they left, a co-defendant stashed the rifle, which was later recovered by tribal police.

Sentencing is set before U.S. District Judge Paul G. Rosenblatt on November 29, 2011. A conviction for armed robbery carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both. In determining an actual sentence, Judge Rosenblatt 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 Police Department. The prosecution is being handled by Jennifer E. Green, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Arizona, Phoenix.

CASE NUMBER: CR-10-8156-003-PCT-PGR
RELEASE NUMBER: 2011-205(Yazzie)