A Parker man, Thomas Leon Hamalowa, was sentenced to 41 months in prison after pleading guilty to robbery. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release.
According to the Department of Justice, on September 4, 2020, Hamalowa was an inmate at the Colorado River Indian Tribes (“CRIT”) Adult Detention Facility when the victim, a CRIT detention officer, transported Hamalowa to Indian Health Services (“IHS”) for medical treatment. After leaving the IHS facility, Hamalowa physically wrestled with the officer in the parking lot, threw the victim to the ground, and drove off in the CRIT Adult Detention Facility vehicle.
The robbery occurred on the CRIT Indian Reservation and both Hamalowa and the officer are members of the CRIT Tribe.