Press Release
Laguna Pueblo Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Assault Conviction
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Mexico
Defendant Prosecuted as Part of Federal Initiative to Address the Epidemic Incidence of Violence Against Native Women
ALBUQUERQUE – Waylon D. Victorino, 25, an enrolled member and resident of Laguna Pueblo, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 15 months in prison for his assault conviction. Victorino will be on supervised release for three years after completing his prison sentence.
Victorino was arrested in Dec. 2016, on a criminal complaint charging him with assaulting a man and woman from Laguna Pueblo resulting in serious bodily injury. According to the complaint, Victorino first assaulted the female victim causing swelling and bruising on her right eye, bruising on her arms and a visible bite mark on the victim’s right wrist. The complaint further alleges that the male victim attempted to intervene between the Victorino and the female victim, at which point, Victorino began hitting the male victim in the face resulting in the male victim losing consciousness.
Victorino subsequently was indicted on Jan. 24, 2017, and was charged with assaulting a man and woman resulting in serious bodily injury on Dec. 11, 2016, on the Laguna Pueblo in Cibola County, N.M.
On March 16, 2017, Victorino pled guilty to one count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury and admitted that on Dec. 11, 2016, he assaulted a male victim resulting in serious bodily injury. In his plea agreement, Victorino admitted that he was assaulting a female victim when a male victim attempted to help her. Victorino admitted that he responded by hitting, punching and kicking the male victim. Victorino further admitted that as the result of the assault, the male victim required medical attention, suffered bruising, and one of his eyes was blind and swollen shut for a week.
This case was investigated by the Laguna/Acoma Agency of the BIA Office of Justice Services and the Pueblo of Laguna Tribal Police Department. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lucy Solimon prosecuted the case pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico, which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.
Updated December 6, 2017
Topics
Indian Country Law and Justice
Violent Crime
Component