Alcohol involved in family fight

She was hit over the head by a microwave, metal chairs and a TV but Effie Peters still managed to tell police Jan. 26 that the assailant was her 17-year-old son.

Peters, 36, of Sanostee, N.M., was at home with her son, whose name was not released since he is a juvenile, and Joe Begay Jr., 33, of Sanostee.

Police said all three had been drinking when a fight broke out. Begay was also hit over the head with a metal chair and had facial injuries. Peters had lacerations to the side of her face.

When police arrived at the house, the first thing they noticed was blood all over the floor.

Begay was flown to the San Juan Regional Medical Center for treatment. The case is still under investigation.

Lukachukai teen hospitalized

An aggravated battery occurred Jan. 9 in Navajo, N.M., police said.

They were alerted when a neighbor saw a female breaking out through a bedroom window in the house across from hers.

The female, later identified by police as Valentina Nez, 19, of Lukachukai, Ariz., began tossing clothes out the window while a man, later identified as Kendrick Harvey, 20, of Navajo, ran out the front door.

Harvey asked the neighbor to call the police and then ran back into the house, the witness told police.

When police arrived, they discovered Nez inside lying on the floor unconscious. Harvey was sitting next to her, bleeding from the arm.

Police said Nez was unresponsive and had shallow breathing. She was taken to the Fort Defiance Indian Hospital and placed in intensive care.

As for Harvey, police said he was uncooperative and they had to use a Taser to get him under control.

Exposure death in Crownpoint

A Jeddito, Ariz., man died of exposure a mere 200 yards north of the Crownpoint Chapter House on Jan. 23, according to police records.

Police said the body of Omar J. Jackson, 31, was found lying on a rock with his head and feet in the snow. Police said they could find no pulse when he was examined.

Death under investigation

Police are investigating what they refer to as the suspicious death of a Fort Defiance man. The victim was identified as Leo L. Slim, 73.

Police were called to the Slim residence by the victim's son, Melvin Slim, no age given. When they arrived, they found Leo Slim having difficulty breathing so he was transported to the local hospital, where he died a few hours later.

Doctors at the hospital pointed out to police that the victim had several signs of trauma to his body when he was admitted. These included abrasions to his arms and chest, fractured ribs and a punctured lung.

Melvin Slim told police that his father was left unattended and may have fallen out of his wheelchair but doctors at the hospital said Leo Slim's injuries were not the type that could have been caused by a simple fall.

Police have ordered an autopsy and the case is still under investigation.

Steamboat death suspicious

Another suspicious death occurred Jan. 8 in the Steamboat, Ariz., area.

A police officer was traveling eastbound on State Route 264 when she noticed a man sitting on the shoulder of the road. She stopped to investigate and called out to the man, but he did not respond.

On closer examination the man - later identified as Virgil Joe, 53, of Steamboat - appeared to have been battered and was very cold to the touch.

Joe was transported to Sage Memorial Hospital where he died two hours later.

An autopsy was ordered and the case is still under investigation.

Police seek clues to injury

Police are investigating the Jan. 4 battery of Alton John, 36, no address given.

A witness called police after she saw a man crawling behind the Shop and Save store in Window Rock just after midnight.

When police got to the scene, they found John, who was very cold and had red marks on his body. He was taken to the Fort Defiance hospital and then flown to Flagstaff Medical Center with massive head trauma.

Police have no suspects but the case is under investigation.

Alcohol involved in stabbing

Police are investigating what appears to be a case of domestic violence that sent two Ganado, Ariz., residents to the hospital with stab wounds.

Sharon and Lyle Pahe, no ages given, were transported to Sage Memorial Hospital after what police said was a night of drinking.

No details were given as to whether any arrests were made.

Witness sought for injured man

A Hunter's Point, Ariz., man was taken to the emergency room at Fort Defiance hospital on Jan. 6 with head injuries.

Police said Marcelino Angeles, 52, was unconscious when he was admitted.

While there are no suspects, police said they have evidence to indicate that there may have been a witness to what happened to him.

A search is underway for a silver Dodge Stratus sedan that was observed at the scene at the time of the incidence.

Tsaile man injured

Another aggravated battery without a suspect occurred Jan. 16 in Fort Defiance.

Jarvis John, 25, of Tsaile, Ariz., was observed going up to a house in Fort Defiance. He then turned to go back the way he came, but collapsed.

He was taken to the Fort Defiance hospital and later flown to Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix with massive head injuries.

Human remains found

Police said human remains were found on State Road 509 near Whitehorse Lake, N.M.

The remains were found Dec. 4 by a trapper, identified as Carlis Glen Stephens, age unknown, of Warrenton, Mo.

He came upon the remains buried underneath a rock overhang. Stephens said he believes the remains had originally been wrapped in a blanket and a bear had disturbed them.

The remains appeared to have been there for several years. The cloth was rotted and the bones appeared to be weathered. The individual is currently listed as a John Doe.

There was initial suspicion that the remains could be a white man who was reported missing in that area several years ago but further investigation revealed that the person had been found dead and later was cremated.

Another set of remains was discovered on Dec. 5 on Fox Road near Jones Ranch, N.M. In this case, a skull was found on the road and determined to be very old. It appears that an Anasazi burial site had been disturbed because broken pieces of pottery were also found, police said.

Fruitland teen dies in collision

A head-on collision claimed the life of a Fruitland, N.M., man on Jan. 18.

Police said Zachary Hogue, 19, was traveling eastbound in a pickup and collided head on with another pickup going in the opposite direction, driven by Michael Chapin, 57, of Glendale, Ariz.

Witnesses said the accident occurred when Hogue tried to pass in a no-passing zone. He was pronounced dead at the scene and Chapin was transported to the San Juan Regional Medical Center for treatment.

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