MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)), published as received.
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced today that Aaron Isaiah Johnson, age 33, of Haskell, Oklahoma was found guilty by a federal jury of two counts of Robbery in Indian Country, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Sections 2111, 1151, 1153 and 2; two counts of Use, Carry and Brandish of Firearm during and in Relation to a Crime of Violence, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 924(c)(1)(A)(i) and (ii) and 2; two counts of Burglary in the Second Degree in Indian Country, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1151, 1153 and Title 21, Oklahoma Statutes, Section 1435(A); Kidnapping in Indian Country, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1201(a)(2), 1151, 1153, and 2; Assault with a Dangerous Weapon with Intent to do Bodily Harm in Indian Country, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 113(a)(3), 1151, 1153 and 2; and Conspiracy to Commit Robbery in Indian Country, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371.
The jury trial began with opening statements on Monday, November 8, 2021, and concluded on Friday, November 12, 2021, with the jury returning guilty verdicts on all nine criminal counts. Based on the jury’s verdicts, the defendant is facing up to life imprisonment.
During the trial the United States presented evidence the defendant committed a series of criminal offenses including: (1) on January 11, 2018, the defendant and two co-conspirators forcibly entered an occupied residence in Porter, Oklahoma, where they tied up, blindfolded, and robbed a 13-year old boy at gun point; (2) on December 18, 2018, the defendant and a co-conspirator forcibly entered an occupied residence in Haskell, Oklahoma, where they assaulted an 82-year old man with a rifle, and robbed him at gun point; (3) on February 27, 2019, the defendant burglarized the Red Bird Fire Station in Red Bird, Oklahoma, and stole two fire department emergency vehicles; and (4) on March 14, 2019, the defendant burglarized the Liberty Fire Station in Mounds, Oklahoma, and stole a fire department emergency vehicle.
The trial evidence established that Johnson was arrested and charged in the District Court of Muskogee County with the January 11, 2018 home invasion. The defendant was released on pretrial bond and required to wear a GPS equipped ankle bracelet. The United States utilized the data recorded from the Johnson’s ankle bracelet to prove the defendant was present at, and committed, the subsequent home invasion robbery and burglaries.
The guilty verdicts were the result of an investigation by the Wagoner County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma prosecuted the case because the defendant in this case is a member of a federally-recognized Indian tribe and the crimes occurred in Wagoner County, within the boundaries of the Muscogee (Creek) and Cherokee Nation Reservations, and within the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
The Honorable Ronald A. White, U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma in Muskogee, presided over the trial and ordered the completion of a presentence report. Sentencing will be scheduled following completion of the report. Johnson was remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal pending the imposition of sentencing.
Assistant United States Attorney Charles Bucca and Special Assistant United States Attorney L.C. Wright represented the United States.
