Man shoots at children, escapes from cops
Ohio man wanders in canyon for more than 20 days

By Kathy Helms
Diné Bureau

FORT DEFIANCE — Navajo Nation Police officers from Crownpoint Police District are seeking a male suspect who allegedly fired what is believed to be a .16-gauge shotgun toward several kids who were walking back to their homes around 10:30 p.m. Tuesday in Littlewater.

According to the report, police were called to NHA housing after dispatchers received a call from individuals who said they heard two shots being fired from a purple Chevrolet S-10 pickup. The suspect fled from officers, leaving the scene in a blue passenger car just as police arrived.

Assisting Officers Chasity Billy and Delfred Begay were able to stop the suspect about two miles south of the housing area. They tried to detain him but he took off, fleeing toward the mesa where they eventually lost contact.

Several rounds of ammunition were found inside the vehicle and officers said liquor was involved in the incident. Criminal charges are pending.

In addition to Billy and Begay, Patrol Officers Kenneth Dann, Shawn Clark, and Ericson Yazzie responded to the incident.


Search and rescue
PAGE — Navajo Nation Police were called out March 22 to Water Hole Canyon to assist county, state and federal agencies in the search and rescue of an Ohio man who, when found, said he had been wandering in the canyon for over 20 days.

William Elmer told rescuers he had survived by drinking from puddles of rainwater and eating grass after his wife chased him off from their vehicle following a domestic dispute. Police said Elmer was very dehydrated, with swollen feet, and would not have survived much longer.

Coconino County Sheriff's Department in Page area received a call around 5 p.m. from several cliff rappelers who said that an unknown person was heard yelling for help inside Water Hole Canyon. At the time of the incident, rappelers were inside the canyon, about one to two miles west of milepost 342 off U.S. Highway 89.

Coconino Deputies Rob Bell and Eric Axlund activated the county's Search and Rescue Team. In addition to Navajo Nation Police, also assisting in the rescue effort were Arizona Department of Public Safety and members of the National Park Service from Grand Canyon and Glen Canyon Dam.

As a safety precaution due to the steep terrain and late hour, Elmer was left in the canyon overnight with Search and Rescue personnel watching over him. He was airlifted out the next day by a National Park Service helicopter and transported to Flagstaff Medical Center by Classic Air MedVac.

It is unknown how he became trapped, according to police.


Death probed
LECHEE — Navajo Nation Police in Tuba City are investigating the death of a woman who was found dead in the desert Tuesday by a horseback rider. The woman, identified by police as Jane Greymountain, was first observed between noon and 2 p.m. by Nelson Black, 39, who said he came upon two persons "passed out" in the desert.

Black went back a second time and found only one person lying on the ground.

When Tuba City Police Officers Donald Seimy and Corrina Thinn arrived on the scene, Seimy found Greymountain lying on the ground with no pulse. Criminal Investigator Greg Secatero was called out, along with Sacred Mountain Medical Service. Greymountain was pronounced dead at 10:25 p.m.

Shoe tracks were found leading away from the body in a southeasterly direction. Police found the second person, identified only as "Lorenzo," inside the residence, intoxicated to the point he had passed out, according to the report.

Upon being awakened, Lorenzo told police that his girlfriend had passed away. "She froze," he said in Navajo.


Aggravated assault
BABY ROCKS — Kayenta Criminal Investigator Darlene James is investigating a case of aggravated assault reported Tuesday by Dewayne Tsosie, 22, who went to the police station to report that his dad, Oscar Sturky, 40, shot at him.

Upon investigation, it was found that Sturky was getting after his two sons over an argument they were having, when he became disorderly toward his son and wife. Tsosie intervened and was asked to leave, according to the report.

Sturky allegedly threatened to beat Tsosie and cut him with a knife. Police said that as Tsosie was leaving, Sturky fired off a round from a rifle. Tsosie left the scene along with his younger brother and went to the police station.

Sturky was detained without incident and later released. Two rifles, seven bottles of beer, and a bag of marijuana leaves were confiscated from the residence by Investigator James. Patrol Officers Tommy Yazzie, Jason White and Marilyn Littleben assisted in the case.


Freak accident
BREAD SPRINGS, N.M. — A 19-year-old Chichiltah man was reported to be in stable condition following an accident Sunday evening off Skeets Road in Bread Springs.

According to Navajo Nation Police from Crownpoint Police District, Vicent Calvine Jr. was injured after he, his father, Vicent Calvine Sr., and his 16-year old brother became stuck on a muddy road off Skeets Road while visiting family members.

Police said Vicent Jr. and his brother got out of the truck, pushed it backward to get it out of the mud and then ran to a nearby tree to wait while Vicent Sr. was to "make a run at the mud."

As Vicent Sr. made the run he lost control of the 1997 Ford Ranger and slid in the mud, striking Vicent Jr. with the front end of the vehicle. Vicent Jr. was thrown into a tree. He was transported to Gallup Indian Medical Center for treatment.

Patrol Officer Shawn Clark and Criminal Investigator Robert James are investigating.