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Friday, Mar 29th

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Ramah man sentenced for federal voluntary manslaughter conviction

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ALBUQUERQUE – Nochise Martinez, 23, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Ramah, N.M., was sentenced July 12 in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 48 months in prison for his conviction on a voluntary manslaughter charge. Martinez will be on supervised release for three years after he completes his prison sentence.

Martinez was arrested on Jan. 4, 2017, on a criminal complaint charging him with killing a Navajo man on the Ramah Navajo Indian Reservation in Cibola County, N.M., on Dec. 31, 2016. According to the criminal complaint, Martinez stabbed the victim multiple times during a fight.

On March 27, 2017, Martinez pled guilty to a felony information charging him with voluntary manslaughter. In entering the guilty plea, Martinez admitted that on Dec. 31, 2016, he killed the victim by stabbing him in the chest with a knife during a fight between the two men.

This case was investigated by the Gallup office of the FBI and the Ramah Navajo Tribal Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Spindle.

Staff Reports