BRONSON TONY, a 45-year-old Navajo man from Gallup, N.M., is headed to federal prison for covering up the truth in a brutal murder case on the Navajo Nation. Tony was sentenced today in Santa Fe, N.M., to six months behind bars followed by one year of supervised release after admitting he lied to FBI agents investigating the killing of a man in Superman Canyon in May 2016.
Tony was charged via felony information on August 14, 2017, for making false statements during two separate FBI interviews — May 14, 2016, and June 2, 2016. He claimed he never went to Superman Canyon with Brian Tony, 46, also of Gallup, and the victim on May 8, 2016. But under oath, he admitted that he did ride to the remote area on the Navajo Indian Reservation in McKinley County, where the victim was later murdered.
In his guilty plea, Tony admitted he stayed in the vehicle while Brian Tony and the victim argued outside. He acknowledged hearing yelling, then seeing Brian Tony return to the car alone — with no victim. He also admitted he stopped the victim’s friend from exiting the vehicle during the altercation. Despite being present, Tony told the FBI he wasn’t there and fabricated a story that Brian Tony injured his arm on barbed wire.
The lies unraveled fast. Federal agents, working with the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety, pieced together timelines and eyewitness accounts. Tony’s false statements during the second interview on June 2, 2016, further undermined the investigation — including false claims about who was present at the time of the murder.
Brian Tony, the man who returned to the vehicle alone, wasn’t so lucky at trial. On September 30, 2017, a federal jury convicted him of first-degree murder and two counts of witness tampering. He now faces a mandatory life sentence under federal law.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Albuquerque and Gallup offices. Both Bronson Tony and Brian Tony were prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph M. Spindle and Nicholas J. Marshall. The court’s message is clear: obstructing justice in a murder case carries its own price — even if you didn’t pull the trigger.
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Key Facts
- State: New Mexico
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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