Tahlequah Resident Sentenced For Aggravated Sexual Abuse And Abusive Sexual Contact

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Jacob Lance Pritchett, age 33, of Tahlequah, Oklahoma, was sentenced to life in prison for one count of Aggravated Sexual Abuse and one count of Abusive Sexual Contact in Indian Country.

The charges arose from investigations by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service.

On July 8, 2022, a federal jury found Pritchett guilty at trial of Aggravated Sexual Abuse of one child over the course of several years, and of a single instance of Abusive Sexual Contact of a second child.  The crimes occurred in Cherokee County, within the boundaries of the Cherokee Nation Reservation and within the Eastern District of Oklahoma. 

“Cases like the one against Mr. Pritchett are some of the most heartbreaking, yet purposeful the FBI can investigate,” said FBI Oklahoma City Special Agent in Charge Edward J. Gray. “I’m grateful for the efforts of our law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to ensure he will never be able to harm another child.”

“Although the abuse inflicted on these innocent victims cannot be erased, this office stands committed to ensuring those who abuse children see justice,” said United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson.  “This sentence today brings a measure of assurance that the defendant will never be free to prey on children again.”

The Honorable Ronald A. White, Chief Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, presided over the hearing in Muskogee.  Pritchett will remain in custody of the U.S. Marshal pending transportation to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.

Assistant United States Attorneys Morgan Muzljakovich and Nicole Paladino represented the United States.