Mescalero man sentenced to a year and a half in prison for assault with a dangerous weapon

           ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Samuel Joseph Chee, 26, of Mescalero, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Mescalero Apache Tribe, was sentenced in federal court today to a year and a half in prison for assault with a dangerous weapon. Chee pleaded guilty on Oct. 8, 2020.

           In his plea agreement, Chee admitted that on Jan. 4, 2020, he assaulted a victim, identified in court records as Jane Doe, with a knife. Jane Doe, also an enrolled member of the Mescalero Apache Tribe, suffered multiple lacerations to both arms and one thumb and required emergency medical treatment. The assault occurred on the Mescalero Apache Reservation in Otero County, New Mexico.

            Upon his release from prison, Chee will be subject to three years of supervised release.

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