San Juan County Man Sentenced to 180 Months in Prison for Murder and Firearm Crimes

ST. GEORGE, Utah - Perry Maryboy, 61, of Bluff, Utah, was sentenced today to 180 months' imprisonment, and a term of two years' supervised release after he admitted to second degree murder.

The sentence, imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Robert J. Shelby, comes after Maryboy was originally convicted by a federal grand jury. Following an appeal reversing his guilty verdict, Maryboy pleaded guilty to murder in the second degree while within Indian Country, and use, carry, and discharge of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

According to court documents and statements made at Maryboy's change of plea and sentencing hearings, Maryboy unlawfully shot and killed another man while within the Navajo Nation on April 13, 2018. Maryboy admitted he was parked on the side of the road, in his truck and using his phone, south of Bluff, Utah, when he was confronted by the victim at his passenger window. An argument ensued and Maryboy exited his truck, retrieved a revolver from the backseat, loaded the revolver, and shot the victim in the back of the head as the victim was leaving. The victim died on scene in front of his common law wife and her 7-year-old child. Maryboy then fled the scene in his truck.

"Our sympathies in this case are with the victim's family who suffered this horrific tragedy," said U.S. Attorney Melissa Holyoak of the District of Utah. "Mr. Maryboy acted with utter disregard for human life when he shot the victim in front of his family. The impact of this violent crime cannot be undone, but it is our hope that the victim's family can find some peace with this case now closed."

"What began as a confrontation escalated into a senseless act of violence," said Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls of the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office. "The consequences of that choice will be carried by the victim's family and loved ones for years to come. Our community is safer with this offender in prison."

The case was investigated the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office's Monticello Resident Agency, Navajo Nation Police Department and Navajo Nation Criminal Investigations.

Assistant United States Attorneys Mark Y. Hirata, Angela M. Reddish-Day, and Stephen P. Dent of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Utah prosecuted the case.