EDGEWOOD, N.M. (AP) 鈥� Five years to the day that Navajo elder Ella Mae Begay disappeared from her home in a remote corner of Arizona, the man who acknowledged beating her, stealing her truck and leaving her on the roadside is free from prison.
Preston Tolth pleaded guilty to robbing Begay and was on May 8 to five years in prison with credit for three years already served. He was released Monday, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
Begay鈥檚 relatives, who expected Tolth to remain in custody until at least 2028, said they were shocked when they heard Monday. The eldest of her three children, Gerald Begay, learned of Tolth鈥檚 release while wrapping up his workday on a construction site and reflecting on the somber anniversary of his mother鈥檚 still-unsolved disappearance.
鈥淭his is just another slap in the face,” Begay said.
Begay, a prolific weaver of Navajo-style rugs and a grandmother of nine, was 62 when she disappeared from Sweetwater on the Navajo Nation. Family and community members searched for her, pressured law enforcement for action and drew to the case that鈥檚 been symbolic of the against Indigenous people.
Shortened sentence
Scott Taylor, a spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, said Tolth received credit for good conduct while incarcerated and under a statute that counts time served after the commission of a crime but before sentencing, including on unrelated charges.
鈥淭he release was calculated in full accordance with federal sentencing law and Bureau of Prisons policy,鈥� Taylor said Thursday.
According to New Mexico court records, Tolth was incarcerated while facing multiple state charges between the time he robbed Begay on June 15, 2021, and his April 2023 arrest. Those separate charges ultimately were dismissed.
The U.S. Attorney鈥檚 Office in Arizona and a public defender who represented Tolth confirmed the conditions of release but otherwise declined comment.
Mark Osler, an expert on sentencing at the University of St. Thomas, said the Federal Bureau of Prisons routinely shortens sentences to reduce overcrowding and recidivism. The bureau has no obligation to notify victims and their families of releases.
鈥淲hat鈥檚 unfortunate here is the lack of communication,鈥� Osler said. 鈥淭hese are people that have been hurt and society owes more to them.鈥�
An elder vanished
On the morning of June 15, 2021, Begay’s daughter, who lived next door to her, called 911 to report a break-in at her own home, according to the Navajo Nation Department of Criminal Investigations. By the time officers arrived 90 minutes later, Begay told them the intruder had left and something else that struck her as odd: She had just seen her mother鈥檚 truck leave the driveway, even though it was well before sunrise.
According to the department, officers 鈥渃hecked on鈥� Begay’s house and noted that the doors were locked but did not confirm if Begay was home. Nine hours later, she was declared missing and tribal police began investigating.
Begay’s family pointed law enforcement to Tolth, whose father was dating Begay’s sister. Investigators twice interrogated him, and Tolth admitted stealing Begay’s truck with her in it, repeatedly punching her in the face and leaving her on the road. He acknowledged he may have hit her hard enough to kill her.
But a federal judge later ruled that confession inadmissible, saying the FBI failed to honor Tolth’s right to refuse questioning. Federal prosecutors then opted to negotiate an agreement rather than go to trial.
鈥淎 miscarriage of justice鈥�
Court documents outlined an unstable childhood for Tolth, marked by homelessness, early substance abuse and parental neglect. A sentencing memo noted he planned to seek mental health treatment once out of prison. He is required to spend six months in a residential reentry center, better known as a halfway house, and will be supervised for three years, under his conditions of release.
The Associated Press left messages for several of Tolth’s relatives on social media platforms this week seeking comment.
Begay’s case received more resources and attention than most involving Indigenous people who are missing or have been killed, said Mary Kathryn Nagle, a Cherokee Nation citizen and attorney who has advocated for Begay’s family. The timeline, however, is emblematic of widespread failures, she said.
鈥淢ost never have their case investigated at all,鈥� Nagle said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 troubling to see (Begay鈥檚) case, even after making it this far, end in a miscarriage of justice.鈥�
Begay has never been found. At the May sentencing hearing, Tolth’s attorney said he made a good faith effort to lead investigators to where he left Begay when he fled in her truck.
On Monday, Begay’s niece, Seraphine Warren, walked over 100 miles (161 kilometers) from Sweetwater to the Navajo Nation capital of Window Rock, Arizona, carrying one of her aunt’s weavings to mark the anniversary of her disappearance. The news of Tolth’s release 鈥済utted鈥� her after an emotional day, she said.
鈥淭hat date will haunt us forever,鈥� Warren said through tears. 鈥淣ow it鈥檚 not just the day my auntie went missing, it鈥檚 the day we were told, 鈥榊ou aren鈥檛 worth anything.鈥欌��
鈥斺赌�
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