Isaiah Whitefox Redbird, Premeditated Murder, Oklahoma 2019

Oklahoma Man Sentenced to Life for Premeditated Murder

OKLAHOMA CITY – In a shocking turn of events, Isaiah Whitefox Redbird, a 36-year-old man from Carnegie, Oklahoma, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for premeditated murder and assault causing serious bodily injury.

The crime took place on September 11, 2018, in Indian Country. Redbird was accused of deliberately killing Byron ‘Subee’ Tongkeamah, Jr., and assaulting his girlfriend, Kayleigh Roughface, with the intent to commit murder.

According to the evidence presented at trial, Redbird had a grudge against the couple and entered an abandoned house where they were taking refuge. He struck them multiple times on the head with a crowbar, leaving Tongkeamah Jr. dead and Roughface with severe injuries, including a fractured skull, a fractured eye socket, a broken arm, and a broken finger.

Roughface survived the attack, but suffered from memory loss and was found disoriented and covered in blood on the morning of September 12, 2018. The body of Tongkeamah Jr. was discovered in the enclosed porch where the attack took place.

A federal grand jury indicted Redbird on November 6, 2019, and he was subsequently convicted of premeditated murder and assault causing serious bodily injury. At a sentencing hearing yesterday, Senior U.S. District Judge Stephen P. Friot sentenced Redbird to serve life in federal prison for the murder of Tongkeamah Jr. and 10 years for the assault on Roughface.

The case was the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Federal Bureau of Investigation—Oklahoma City Field Office, the Carnegie Police Department, and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brandon Hale and Mark Stoneman prosecuted the case.

Redbird, whose full name is Isaiah Whitefox Redbird, is a Kiowa Indian and the federal government had jurisdiction over the offense due to the location of the crime in Indian Country. The premeditated murder and assault charges carry severe penalties, and Redbird’s sentencing reflects the gravity of the crimes he committed.

The sentencing of Redbird serves as a reminder of the importance of upholding justice and holding individuals accountable for their actions, particularly in cases where the victims are innocent and the crimes are heinous. The case will be remembered as a tragic example of the devastating consequences of violence and the need for communities to come together to prevent such crimes from occurring in the future.

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