Pinehill Man Charged with Sexually Abusing Minors
ALBUQUERQUE / Thursday, November 20, 2025 – A Pinehill man has been indicted on federal charges for sexually abusing two minors over a seven-year period.
According to court documents, between February 2017, and February 2023, TJ James, 41, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, engaged in sexual acts with two minor victims.
James is charged with four counts of sexual abuse, one count of abusive sexual contact and two counts of aggravated sexual abuse and will remain in custody pending trial, which has not yet been scheduled. If convicted, James faces no less than 30 years and up to life in prison.
Acting U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Justin A. Garris, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.
The Gallup Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with the assistance of the Ramah-Navajo Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Mondragon is prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit Justice.gov/PSC.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source: U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Mexico
