Man sentenced in double homicide

A former Chippewa Cree Tribal judge connected to a double homicide in Box Elder pleaded guilty Monday to unrelated drug charges, while a man who pleaded guilty to the crime was sentenced to 40 years in prison with a chance to reject the sentence.

Judge Kaydee Snipes Ruiz sentenced Angleo Hawk Sanchez in state District Court in Fort Benton Tuesday to 50 years in the Montana State Prison with 10 suspended and credit for 285 days served. She ordered him to pay $11,609 in restitution.

Sanchez was charged in connection with the deaths of Darrin Wade Caplette and Thomas “T.R” Yallup, who were shot and killed in the early morning hours of Much 28.

Snipes Ruiz said that as she was deviating from the recommended sentence in the plea agreement, Sanchez can reject the sentence.

Sanchez attorney, Molley Woodman, asked for some time to consult with her client to determine whether to accept the sentence or not.

Snipes Ruiz instructed Woodman to file notice, either way, by Friday.

A codefendant, Angelo Castillo-Haffley, is scheduled for trial March 24.

Another codefendant, who was 16 at the time of the shooting, has a status hearing scheduled for Feb. 10.

And the U.S. Attorney fo the District of Montana, Jesse Laslovich, said in a release Monday that Melody Rose Bernard of Rocky Boy pleaded in federal District Court in Great Falls Monday guilty to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances and to use of a firearm in the commission of a drug trafficking crime.

Bernard faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release on the drug charge and a mandatory minimum of five years to life in prison, consecutive to any other sentence, a $250,000 fine and five years of supervised release on the firearm charge.

Chief U.S. District Judge Brian Morris set sentencing for May 1, and Bernard was kept in custody pending sentencing.

The government alleged in court documents that from October 2023 to May 21, 2024, Bernard trafficked substantial amounts of meth, fentanyl and cocaine to the Rocky Boys Indian Reservation in Hill County. One witness told law enforcement about making four trips for Bernard since November 2023 and estimated transporting 23 pounds of meth, 4,500 fentanyl pills, five ounces of fentanyl powder and three ounces of cocaine for Bernard. The witness further estimated transporting $230,000 for Bernard and watched as Bernard distributed narcotics from her house in Box Elder and from her business, Ziah’s. The witness also admitted that a firearm located in the residence belonged to the witness and that Bernard had given it to the witness for protection.

Law enforcement learned from other individuals that Bernard was selling narcotics out of Ziah’s. One of the individuals described buying fentanyl pills two or three times from Bernard, received 25 to 40 pills each time and was charged $10 to $20 per pill. In an interview with another person, law enforcement learned that Bernard was a source of supply for the Rocky Boys Indian Reservation, dealing from 500 to 1,000 fentanyl pills at a time. Bernard’s common price for a pill was about $40, however, if someone purchased in bulk or if Bernard knew the buyer well, she would sell for as low as $10 to $20 per pill.

May 21, 2024, law enforcement executed a state search warrant at Bernard’s residence. Both Bernard and a witness were in the house. The witness was located hiding in a bathroom. The agent observed a large amount of meth and cocaine in the bathtub with the water running, and it was apparent to the agent that the witness was attempting to destroy evidence. Law enforcement recovered meth, cocaine and fentanyl pills, approximately $8,800 cash and a firearm.

In addition, March 27, 2024, co-defendant Airian Mariah Russette purchased two firearms from North 40 Outfitters in Havre and immediately traveled back to Box Elder where she traded the firearms to Bernard in exchange for four oxycodone pills. The two firearms were recovered several hours later after they were used in a double homicide and were still in the possession of the homicide suspects. Russette admitted to lying on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Form 4473 to buy the firearms for someone other than herself, Bernard, a transaction known as a straw purchase. The firearms were a .380-caliber semi-automatic pistol and a 9mm semi-automatic pistol. Russette pleaded guilty and is pending sentencing.

Charging documents allege that Cortez was a connection Bernard had with a drug ring headed by a gang leader already serving a prison sentence in California. The document says Cortez and her brother Angel Castillo-Haffley, who is charged with the murders and scheduled for trial in March, both children of the imprisoned drug leader, Martin “Junior” Topete, were part of the distribution system that brought drugs to the area, including to Bernard.

The three charged in the shootingwere identified through video footage from the bar where the shooting occurred at about 1:30 a.m. March 28. Their faces were obscured in the video from the bar but their clothing was visible, and Bernard identified the three in the video.

The vehicle used in the shooting belonged to Bernard, a court document said.

The three also were seen in another video entering and exiting Bernard’s residence the day before the shooting, March 27, and driving Bernard’s vehicle that was used in the shooting, the document said.

Law enforcement gathered information that the three were staying in a Havre hotel, and found the three — and Cortez — there. Clothing consistent with what the suspects in the shooting were wearing was found in the room.

The three were taken to the Hill County Sheriff’s Office, where they were interviewed by law enforcement. All three declined to speak with law enforcement.

Due to evidence collected at the scene and witness statements, the three were charged with deliberate homicide, a court document said.

A court document said law enforcement had started investigating Bernard since September 2023 after a witness said she was selling narcotics out of Ziah’s.

In November, another witness the document said is a known drug user on Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation told law enforcement Bernard was selling fentanyl pills out of her pizza place.

Law enforcement interviewed other witnesses also said Bernard sold fentanyl and methamphetamine, both out of her businesses and out of her home.

March 11, the document said, law enforcement had a “confidential human source” conduct a controlled purchase of fentanyl from Bernard and another source on Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation.

Another informant told law enforcement March 21 that Bernard was selling large amounts of meth and fentanyl out of her Box Elder residence and business. The informant said Bernard was being sourced by a Mexican male known as “Junior” who was incarcerated in California.

The informant also said a Hispanic woman known as “Green Eyes” was the middle person between Bernard and “Junior,” the document said.

Officers investigating the shooting learned, primarily through video surveillance, that Bernard was present at the shooting and temporarily transported one of the victims after he was shot. She was seen talking on a cell phone before, during and after the shooting, the document said.

Law enforcement interviewed Bernard March 28 and she identified the three people in the suspect vehicle as the three who have been charged in the shooting, the document said. She also identified a person listed in her phone as “Green Eyes” to be named Ashley. Bernard said she did not know the woman very well, and the woman would force Bernard to let her stay with her.

Bernard also said the woman was part of the drug activity at Rocky Boy and was the daughter of “Junior” and they all are drug dealers out of California, the document said.

When law enforcement found the three charged in the shooting in the Havre hotel, Ashley “Green Eyes” Cortez was with them, the document said.

After executing a search warrant, law enforcement found two handguns, multiple cell phones and suspected narcotics in the hotel room, the document said.

In further investigation, the document said, law enforcement was able to positively identify “Junior” as Martin Topete, an inmate of the Centinela State Prison in California. Law enforcement learned that Topete is incarcerated for a drug-related premeditated murder of a rival gang member in 2015, the document said.

The document said that information found during the investigation led law enforcement to believe Topete had ordered Yallup or Caplette or both to be murdered. Law enforcement also had received information from multiple sources that Hispanic males were in the area of the reservation to “clean house,” which they interpreted as a threat to life, the document said.

After obtaining a warrant to review data from the phone with the number with which Bernard had conducted a 31-minute phone call before, during and after the shooting was determined to have been in the area of Centinala State Prison for the duration of the warrant, April 14 through May 10, the document said.

A phone known to have been used by Bernard contacted that number 14 times during the period of the warrant, the document said.

Further review of Bernard’s cell phone obtained in the homicide investigation also found an abundance of evidence implicating Bernard in narcotics trafficking, the document said, including a conversation between Bernard and Cortez.

Witnesses told law enforcement that Bernard had continued to traffic narcotics after the March 28 shooting, the document said.

In May, law enforcement executed a search warrant on Bernard’s residence. The document said an agent saw Cortez hiding in a bathroom with water running. After detaining Cortez, the agent saw a large amount of suspected meth and cocaine in the bathtub with the water running, apparently to destroy evidence.

Cortez and Bernard were both located in the house while the search warrant was executed, along with two others not identified in the document, and 64.5 grams of meth confirmed through a TruNarc scanner, about 98 grams of cocaine confirmed through a TruNarc scanner, and about 64 fentanyl pills. Law enforcement also found about $6,400 in cash and a firearm.

In the firearms case, the government alleged in court documents that on March 27, Airian Mariah Russette purchased two pistols from North 40 Outfitters, a federal firearms licensee in Havre, and immediately traveled back to Box Elder, where she traded the firearms to an individual in exchange for four oxycodone pills.

The individual had contacted Russette prior to the purchase by text message and asked Russette to buy the two guns.

The two firearms were recovered several hours later by law enforcement after they were used in a double homicide and still in possession of the homicide suspects.

During an interview, Russette admitted to lying on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ Form 4473 to buy the firearms for someone other than herself, a transaction known as a straw purchase. She further admitted that she traded the firearms for the four pills. Because Russette checked “yes” on the ATF form that she was the actual buyer of the firearms, it influenced North 40 Outfitters into believing that the two pistols could be lawfully sold to Russette and caused the business to do so.

The firearms were a .380-caliber semi-automatic pistol and a 9mm semi-automatic pistol.