Operation Not Forgotten Supports 548 Investigations, Leads to 118 Arrests in Tribal Communities

A six-month deployment of FBI personnel and investigative resources supported 548 investigations in Indian Country, resulting in 118 arrests and federal charges against 41 people, the Justice Department announced October 20.

Operation Not Forgotten, now in its fourth year, prioritizes unresolved violent crimes involving women and children, including missing and murdered people. The 2026 deployment ran from April 1 through September 30.

According to the Justice Department’s announcement, investigators identified or located 25 child victims, recovered 72 weapons, conducted 990 interviews and carried out 232 search operations. The department reported a 59% increase in investigations supported, a 123% increase in arrests and a 52% increase in people charged compared with 2025.

The FBI assigned investigative, intelligence and support personnel to rotating temporary assignments across 12 field offices, including Portland. Personnel worked with tribal law enforcement, the Bureau of Indian Affairs Missing and Murdered Unit and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices.

The announcement did not provide an Oregon-specific breakdown of investigations, arrests or charges.

Cases highlighted by the department involved alleged homicide, child sexual abuse, domestic violence and other assaults.

In Wyoming, the operation supported federal indictments against 18 people accused of violent crimes and child abuse offenses on the Wind River Indian Reservation. Among them was Jose Benito Ocon, who allegedly shot and killed a male passenger inside a moving vehicle near Riverton in August 2025 before turning the firearm on two female witnesses.

Ocon faces five felony counts, including first-degree murder, a firearm offense and two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, according to the department.

In Nevada, a superseding indictment charged Delshay Astor with the alleged February 2022 murder of Anna Scott, a member of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe. Joel Christy was charged with helping Astor avoid apprehension.

Other cases cited in the announcement included alleged sexual abuse of minors in Minnesota, a death investigation and a separate strangulation case in Montana, and assault, arson and child sexual abuse cases in Arizona.

The charges are allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

The department also reported results from Operation Steadfast Promise, a broader initiative launched in April to address violent crime in tribal communities. That effort opened more than 1,200 investigations, obtained charges against 678 people, made more than 700 arrests, recovered 2,260 weapons and conducted 140 drug seizures.

The announcement did not specify how much the two operations’ results overlap, so their figures should not be combined into a single total.

The FBI said more than 4,000 investigations remained open in Indian Country, including cases involving deaths, child abuse, domestic violence and adult sexual abuse.

People with information about unresolved cases can contact their local FBI field office or submit information at tips.fbi.gov. The bureau’s Voices Not Forgotten webpage also provides a searchable map of cases seeking public assistance.