Mescalero Apache man sentenced to federal prison for chainsaw attack

            ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Josea Michael Kazhe, 20, of Mescalero, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Mescalero Apache Tribe, was sentenced on Dec. 8 to 18 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to assault resulting in serious bodily injury.

            In his plea agreement, Kazhe admitted to assaulting another man with a chainsaw on the Mescalero Apache Reservation on Dec. 24, 2019. The victim’s injury was so serious he required emergency transportation to University Medical Center in El Paso.

            Following his prison term, Kazhe will serve two years of supervised release.    

            The FBI investigated this case with the Bureau of Indian Affairs.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron O. Jordan prosecuted the case.