NASCHITTI, N.M. – The Navajo Police Department is confirming that officers were involved in a shooting Wednesday evening, according to a news release issued by Navajo Police Department senior public relations officer Christina Tsosie.

“It is confirmed at this time that there was a single death and responding officers were not harmed,” she said.

This case is actively being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Navajo Division of Public Safety.

“We would like to reassure the community that the incident was localized and there was no immediate threat to the public,” she said.

This is a developing story. Details regarding this incident is not immediately available for release.

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. – When the Navajo Police Department responded to a possible shots fired call in the Nazlini, Ariz. community Jan. 12, there was no indication that a game of Russian roulette was played at the time of the incident, NPD spokeswoman Christina Tsosie said in statement Friday.

Tsosie explained that responding officers arrived on the scene and found a female victim at a neighbor's home. The neighbor reported to the officer on scene that she had heard arguing next door and a short time later the victim came to her home seeking assistance.

The female victim had blood coming from a laceration on her forehead which she indicated was caused by the suspect when he slammed her head against an object. The male suspect was a family member and that they had been drinking at their home.

Officers made entry into the residence and found the suspect on the living room couch. He was arrested without incident.

"The victim had a laceration on her head however it was not a gunshot wound," Tsosie said. "This case is currently being investigated by the Division of Public Safety Criminal Investigation department and no further details will be shared at this time."

The Navajo Times reported on Jan. 17 that a Navajo Nation ranger had been shot while playing a game of Russian roulette with a former Navajo police officer. The story has since been removed from the paper's website.

In response to a story recently distributed by the media, the Office of the Chief of Police Phillip Francisco issued the following statement:

"The Navajo Police Department does not prematurely share information regarding cases that are considered open investigation without knowing the overall facts of a case. We refrain from releasing detailed information to protect the integrity of a case and to protect the victims involved in a crime."

Major crimes and other incident reports distributed to the media is authorized and officially released through the Navajo Police Department Office of Chief of Police. Next, the information is issued through a press release produced by the department public information officer and distributed with the approval of Navajo Police Chief Phillip Francisco or the Division of Public Safety Division Director.

The Navajo Police Department scrutinizes the issuance of names of victims, suspects or details of a case to allow for the investigation to complete and prosecutors can file official charges.

Any alternative source of information used is not the official statement of the Chief of Police.

Marine belongs to a special group of men that outwitted the enemy in the Pacific Theater during WWII

Staff Reports

WINDOW ROCK— President Russell Begaye offers his condolences to the family of Navajo Code Talker Alfred K. Newman, 94, who passed away this past Sunday.

“Navajo Code Talker Alfred Newman was a hero, and he stood amongst giants,” Begaye said. “We will be forever grateful for his contributions and bravery, as well as that of each and every one of our Navajo Code Talkers. They are national treasures.”

Mr. Newman enlisted with the United States Marine Corps on March 26, 1943, at Fort Wingate and became part of the 1st Battalion, 21st Marine Regiment, 3rd Division. According to his daughter, Cherylin Newman, he was honorably discharged on Dec. 30, 1945, with the rank of corporal.

Using Diné bizaad, Mr. Newman fought with his fellow Marines in the Bougainville Campaign, the Battle of Guam and the Battle of Iwo Jima.

“On the battlefields of the Pacific Theater, our language proved unbreakable,” Begaye said. “It was critical in protecting the lives of American soldiers, and to the success of the United States in World War II.”

In honor of Navajo Code Talker Alfred K. Newman, flags will be flown at half-staff on the day of the funeral.

After the war, Mr. Newman worked as an ammunition inspector at Fort Wingate. Then he moved to Kirtland and worked for a coal mining company until he retired after 25 years.

Mr. Newman was born in Rehoboth, N.M. and is Naanesht'ézhi Dine'é born for Tsi'naajinii. He is survived by his wife Betsy Eleanor. Together they were married for 69 years and had five children: Alfred Jr., Marvin, Cherylin, Donovan and Kevin.  

Arrangements for the funeral are still pending.

Shares his experience ‘running toward danger’

Leaving a restaurant after dinner one December evening, the instincts instilled through years in the United States Army and working as a firefighter kicked into full gear for Casey Franchot.

Franchot, 43, of the east side of Gallup, and formerly of New York, said he was leaving Taco Bell, 914 E. Hwy 66, the evening of Dec. 8, when he heard shouting across the street.

Franchot said someone was yelling that her baby was shot.

“I just took off across the street,” he said. “It was an inherent response.”

That evening just after 6:30 pm, according to a police report, Gallup Police Department Officer Darius Johnson was dispatched to Zia Motel, 915 E. Highway 66, in reference to shots fired.

At the scene, Johnson met GPD Officer Douglas Hoffman, who had arrived before him and picked up Franchot, who was carrying an 8-month-old child who had been shot in the face.

The child’s mother, Shayanne Nelson, 18, and her boyfriend, Tyrell Bitsilly, 21, told police they were in the bathroom while the children were alone in the motel room. They claimed the 3-year-old got ahold of a gun and shot the baby.

Franchot said when he entered the room at the Zia Motel after hearing the shouts, he took the baby from the mother’s arms, and positioned the child so he could shield her in case Bitsilly, who he said was holding the gun, opened fire.

Once he did what he could to protect the baby, Franchot said he assessed her condition, doing what he could to control the bleeding and her breathing.

Franchot’s ability to respond in such a situation resulted from his three years serving as a combat infantryman in the military. He was inspired to join the armed forces by his father, who served in the Marine Corps.

After his service, Franchot spent five years as an EMT and firefighter in New York and worked as a firefighter in Gallup for two years.

“[The military] trains you to go towards danger,” he said. “That stuff never leaves you, the training, the experience. Everything kicks back in.”

The survival skills one learns in the military become second nature, Franchot said.

“Most people run away from danger, and it’s instilled in you to run towards danger and help out,” he said.

Hoffman was the first officer on scene within about two minutes of the discovery, Franchot said.

“I scooped the baby up and told [him], ‘We have to get out of here now because she’s not going to make it if we don’t,’” he said.

Franchot sat with the baby in the back of Hoffman’s vehicle as Hoffman drove to Gallup Indian Medical Center. He tended to the child as Hoffman drove.

Franchot said he spoke to the child while they were transporting her.

He told her, “Keep fighting, little girl.”

When Hoffman and Franchot arrived at GIMC and turned the baby over to the emergency room staff, they finally had a moment to process what had happened.

While Franchot was the first to arrive on scene and tended to the baby’s wounds, he believes Hoffman played the most important role in getting her to the hospital.

“If it wasn’t for him showing up as quick as he did, getting us up there as quickly as he did, I don’t think she would have made it,” Franchot said.

Franchot said Hoffman deserves credit for his actions; he thinks the officer is worthy of a commendation for his role that night.

“I just did what I was trained to do. When I joined the military and the fire department, I took an oath,” Franchot said. “I just think as long as I have the skills and the knowledge to help people, I feel obligated to do that.”

But ultimately, he said, the hero in this story is the baby. Franchot called her a tough little kid — and inspiring.

“I can’t imagine how she’s feeling,” he said. “I was just amazed at how hard she fought, how tough she was to make it through that situation.”

Franchot said as of Dec. 19, the child had been put into a medically induced coma, and the situation has been tough for him as an observer.

He said it’s unfair a child so young has to fight for a second chance to live.

“I would trade her life for mine,” he said. “She hasn’t had a chance to live yet.”

Following their arrest for abuse of a child, a preliminary hearing for both Nelson and Bitsilly has been set for Jan. 9 at Gallup Magistrate Court.

By Cody Begaye
Sun Correspondent