FBI using Navajo language to help close unsolved cases
The department trying is a new approach to an unsolved 2014 case.
The department trying is a new approach to an unsolved 2014 case.
The department trying is a new approach to an unsolved 2014 case.
The FBI is trying to help bring closure to families across the Navajo Nation whose loved one was killed or went missing.
Recently, the FBI office in Albuquerque released a poster in Navajo. It's a first-of-its-kind effort for the department with the goal of closing some unsolved homicide cases.
"The FBI is going to communicate any way we can that makes it easier for people who may have information to contact us," said FBI spokesperson Frank Fisher. "It's justice for these victims and their families that we're after."
The first case they are highlighting in Navajo is the death of 75-year-old Wilson Joe Chiquito. He was from Counselor, New Mexico, and was beaten to death in February of 2014. He died due to blunt force trauma to his head.
"I was on our evidence response team that responded to that homicide and it was it was a horrible scene," Fisher said. "This man was living out his retirement years. He did not deserve to have this happen to him."
The department has a Navajo Translator in their Salt Lake City office and they work closely together. They hope by translating posters and audio into Navajo will not only bring attention to Chiquito's case but to other unsolved cases as well.
"Somebody out there knows what happened to Wilson Joe Chiquito, to Laverda Sorrell, to Anthonette Cayedito, to any number of people out there, that are either homicide victims or missing persons that are related to the Navajo Nation," Fisher said.
Each person Fisher named has a poster that has also been translated into Navajo. Audio versions of other posters are in the works.
Anyone with information about these cases is asked to contact the FBI.
There is a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for the death of Chiquito.