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Press Release

Tohatchi Man Sentenced to 37 Months in Prison for Domestic Assault

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced that Anthony Joe was sentenced to 37 months in prison. Joe, 38, of Tohatchi, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, pled guilty to assault of a spouse, intimate partner, or dating partner by strangling on February 22, 2023.

According to court records, on Aug. 13, 2022, Joe assaulted the victim, Jane Doe, as she was trying to leave Joe’s residence. Joe punched Jane Doe with a closed fist in the back of her head and in her side while she was holding their child, then kicked Jane Doe in the back and pulled her away from the door by her hair. Jane Doe eventually escaped from the residence without her child and ran to a nearby gas station where she called law enforcement.

When Jane Doe was later interview by the FBI regarding the incident, she reported that Joe used his arm to choke her from behind as Jane Doe attempted to leave their shared bedroom and knocked her to the floor. As she tried to get away, Joe used his hands to choke Jane Doe twice, causing her to see black and go limp both times. Jane Doe reported needing time after being choked to catch her breath. Jane Doe received medical treatment for the injuries inflicted by Joe and was diagnosed with contusion and soft tissue injury for the bruising to her neck, back, and face.

Over the next month, Joe harassed Jane Doe, her family, and her co-workers. On Sept. 6, Joe set fireworks off in front of Jane Doe’s home, then fled from officers when they approached him. On Sept. 12, 2022, Joe vandalized Jane Doe’s car and threw rocks at the residence where Jane Doe was staying with her relative, and through the window of a residence where Jane Doe previously lived. Joe also vandalized Jane Doe’s workplace by spray-painting “[Jane] you meth whore” on the building. On Sept. 13, 2022, the FBI found incendiary devices known as “Molotov Cocktails” around the trailer of a man Joe believed Jane Doe was in a relationship with.

Upon his release from prison, Joe will be subject to 3 years of supervised release.

The Gallup Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Nation Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Brittany DuChaussee is prosecuting the case.

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24-45

Updated January 31, 2024

Topic
Indian Country Law and Justice
Press Release Number: 24-45