Charges against Fort Apache rape suspects dropped

Friday, March 9, 2007  

The White Mountain Apache Tribe of Arizona has dropped charges against two men who were suspected of committing a series of rapes on the Fort Apache Reservation.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs arrested Jesse Dupris and Jeremy Reed in October 2006 amid a high-profile investigation and media campaign about the sexual assaults of young girls. But the tribal prosecutor said there was no evidence against the two men, who had worked as security officers for the tribe.

"I try to stand by my victims and I try to give them justice, but I just don't have the evidence," Paula King told the Associated Press. "It got a lot of big press about how BIA had solved these rapes, but when I work with the evidence, I don't have them solved."

King said the BIA conducted shoddy work on the case. She said the agency was pressured to make arrested due to national media attention, which was generated by the government.

A third man, however, remains jailed on federal charges for some of the rapes. Jimi Aday is set to go to trial April 17.

According to the BIA, 15 girls and one young woman were sexually assaulted by a man who appeared to be dressed as a police officer.

Get the Story:
Charges dropped against 2 men in sexual assaults on reservation (AP 3/8)

Relevant Links:
White Mountain Apache Tribe - http://www.wmat.nsn.us

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