FBI director visits Navajo Nation

GALLUP — FBI Director Christopher Wray met with Navajo Nation tribal officials this week, becoming the first head of the federal law enforcement agency to visit the nation’s largest Indian reservation.

The purpose of the trip was to allow Wray to introduce himself to tribal leaders during a visit to FBI field offices, FBI spokesman Frank Fisher said.

Wray visited the tribal capital in Window Rock, Ariz., on Friday and spoke with Navajo Nation President Russell Begaye and other tribal and federal law enforcement officials, including FBI agents stationed in New Mexico, the Gallup Independent reported.

The FBI investigates major crimes on tribal reservations and Wray said his visit, which included a stop at a crime scene, helped him get a look at law enforcement “on the front lines.”

After the meeting, Wray said he was “very impressed by the partnership” between Navajo and FBI officials.

The Navajo Nation reservation covers 27,000 square mile in northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico and southeastern Utah, making it larger than West Virginia.

The visit to a site where a homicide had occurred was intended to show Wray “the remoteness of the Navajo Nation,” said Nation Police Chief Phillip Francisco. “They picked one that was kind of close so they didn’t have to drive that far.”