The FBI gave citizens a rare glimpse into the work that’s gone into Operation Not Forgotten on Oct, 22, detailing the two-year project’s successes in combating crime on reservations.
Twenty-two different tribal nations received a surge in FBI personnel for two four-month periods, one in 2023 and one in 2024. These surges allowed the FBI to work on numerous unsolved cases of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People as part of Operation Not Forgotten.
The operation sought to expand and build on relationships with tribal nations and law enforcement partners, move cases to the criminal justice system and provide care to victims.
From June to September of 2024, the FBI dispersed 51 personnel who opened 2,000 new investigations in 22 communities in Indian Country, officials said. These investigations include kidnappings, deaths, child sexual abuse, domestic violence and adult sexual abuse cases.
These efforts have led to over 40 arrests, over 40 search warrants executed, 11 violent offenders indicted and nine child victims identified and recovered from abusive or neglectful situations.
Through FBI Victims Services, personnel were able to provide direct support and services to 440 victims and next-of-kin.
Support included crisis intervention, case status updates, child/adolescent forensic interviews, support in investigative interviews, assistance with Crime Victims Compensation applications, resource referrals, transportation assistance, Child Protective Services coordination, and Emergency Victim Assistance Funding for lodging and other expenses.
The 22 nations that benefited from these resources and personnel were the Jicarilla Apache Nation, Arizona and New Mexico portions of the Navajo Nation, Hannahville Indian Community, Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, Ute Mountain Indian Reservation, Wind River Indian Reservation, Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation, Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, Muscogee Creek Nation of Oklahoma, Santee Sioux Nation, Omaha Nation, Warm Springs Indian Reservation, Tohono O’odham, Havasupai Indian Reservation, Spokane Indian Reservation, Colville Indian Reservation, Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, Rocky Boy Indian Reservation and Fort Peck Indian Reservation.
Officers were dispersed to 10 field offices nationwide and from there traveled to different reservations. These field offices included Albuquerque, Detroit, Denver, Minneapolis, Oklahoma City, Omaha, Portland, Phoenix, Seattle and Salt Lake City. In 2023 and 2024, the operation surged resources to all 10 field offices over a period of four months.
“The work this agency does in Indian Country territory is among our organization’s highest priorities,” Michael Rivers, who leads the FBI’s Indian Country and International Violent Crime Unit, said in a press release. “We are proud of and committed to the support and resources we devote to these investigations and the victims. Our hope is that this surge of resources and prioritized action will let people and communities know they are not forgotten.”
Officials also discussed the Safe Trials Task Forces, which are comprised of federal, tribal, state and local law enforcement partners nationwide.
These task forces operate across Indian Country. One of which, the Badlands Safe Trails Drug Taskforce on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, seized “significant amounts of cash and drugs, including 4 firearms, 30 pounds of marijuana, and 4 pounds of cocaine” in one traffic stop on Sept. 27, according to the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety.
“By expanding our presence in Indian Country and working closely with our partner law enforcement agencies and community advocates, the FBI is committed to bringing closure to unresolved cases and bringing justice to victims and their families,” an Oct. 23 press release said.
This story is co-published by the Rapid City Journal and ICT, a news partnership that covers Indigenous communities in the South Dakota area.