Five years after a Navajo elder vanished, the man who robbed her was released from prison
Tolth was released after pleading guilty to robbery and receiving credit for time served, while Begay’s family said they expected him to remain jailed until 2028.
- On Monday, Preston Tolth was released from prison five years to the day after Navajo elder Ella Mae Begay disappeared from her Arizona home. Tolth had pleaded guilty to robbing Begay.
- Investigators interrogated Tolth, who admitted stealing Begay's truck and beating her repeatedly; however, a federal judge ruled that confession inadmissible, citing FBI failure to honor his rights. Prosecutors then negotiated a plea agreement.
- Federal Bureau of Prisons spokesperson Scott Taylor said Thursday the release followed sentencing law and conduct credits. Tolth must spend six months in a residential reentry center and face three years of supervision.
- Seraphine Warren, Begay's niece, walked 161 kilometers to Window Rock on Monday marking the anniversary when she learned of Tolth's release. The news "gutted" her, Warren said through tears.
- Attorney Mary Kathryn Nagle, a Cherokee Nation citizen, said the case is emblematic of widespread failures for Indigenous people. Nagle called the outcome "troubling," stating it ends "in a miscarriage of justice.
38 Articles
38 Articles
Associated Press News
Five years after a Navajo elder vanished, the man who robbed her was released from prison
Five years to the day Navajo elder Ella Mae Begay disappeared, the man who acknowledged beating her and leaving her on the side of the road is free from prison.
This Thursday, María Hilda N., better known as “Lili”, a beauty queen who managed to change her precautionary measures, now faces her trial for the crime of labor exploitation, away from the prison and only with the use of a bracelet, which worries the women of the Sierra Norte who were their victims when they were hired as domestic workers in the capital. Before the end of this day, the change in the precautionary measures of María Hilda N.
Former Miss Puebla, María Hilda, also known as Lili, accused of enslaving women in the Sierra Norte region of Puebla City, was released from prison after a change in her pretrial detention measures. She had been held in the San Miguel prison for three years on charges of labor exploitation, following complaints from two of her former employees. According to information published by El Sol de Puebla, María Hilda was fitted with an electronic moni…
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