May 22, 2021 - Hattiesburg, Miss. – A member of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians pleaded guilty today (May 21) to the 2017 murder of a female tribal member on the Choctaw Indian Reservation, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca of the Southern District of Mississippi and Michelle Sutphin, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Mississippi.

According to court documents, on July 1, 2017, Stuart Brian Nickey, 37, of the Bogue Homa Community of the Choctaw Indian Reservation, beat his tribal member girlfriend in the face with his fists which resulted in her death.

A federal grand jury in September of 2017 indicted Nickey on the charge of murder in the second degree. Nickey pleaded guilty to the indictment and is scheduled to be sentenced on September 29, 2021 at 9:30 a.m. He faces a maximum penalty of life in prison. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting U.S. Attorney LaMarca commended the work of the Choctaw Police Department of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation who investigated the case.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin J. Payne and Lynn Murray.

Source: DOJ Release