She was a budding musician and talented artist, a girl whose death at the hands of a man who authorities said lured her into his van spread grief far beyond her home on the Navajo Nation.
On Friday, more than 3,000 people turned out for Ashlynne Mike’s funeral in Farmington, New Mexico, weeping as images of the 11-year-old girl were displayed overhead and the sounds of her xylophone rang out in the auditorium.
A headstone created for her grave read: “our little angel in heaven.”
Photo: The Daily Times via AP
The crowd far outnumbered the community of Lower Fruitland, where Ashlynne was raised with her father and siblings. Entire families, hugging each other and their children, sat before her small white coffin. Many wore yellow T-shirts.
Navajo Nation Council Speaker LoRenzo Bates said yellow represents hope, strength and resilience, and it was one of Ashlynne’s favorite colors.
New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez called on the mourners to carry on the kindness Ashlynne showed the world.
“I cannot imagine the pain Ashlynne’s loved ones feel right now,” the governor said. “But even as we mourn her, we should celebrate her life and remember what a beautiful little girl she was, inside and out.”
More than 320km away in Albuquerque, suspect Tom Begaye Jr waived his right to a preliminary and detention hearing, and a judge ordered him to remain in custody on charges of murder and kidnapping.
Public defender James Loonam was assigned to represent him and did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Begaye has been cited multiple times by Navajo police since 2006 on suspicion of public intoxication, speeding, theft, disorderly conduct and not having a valid driver’s license, according to tribal records. Off the reservation, he had a citation for drug possession about three weeks ago.
An FBI agent’s affidavit said Begaye, a 27-year-old Navajo who lived down a stretch of highway from Ashlynne’s home, persuaded her and her nine-year-old brother, who had been playing near their bus stop after school, to climb into his van.
The boy told police that the man took them deep into the desert and then walked off with his sister to an even more remote spot, before returning alone.
Begaye told investigators he assaulted the girl and struck her twice in the head with a crowbar, and that she was still moving when he left her, according to the affidavit.
The slaying has raised tough questions for residents and law enforcement on the country’s largest Native American reservation, which stretches for about 70,000km2 into New Mexico, Utah and Arizona.
Eight hours passed between the family’s initial missing-persons report and an Amber Alert that went out at 2:27am on Tuesday, urging people around the region to be on the lookout.
Her body was not found until later that morning, south of Shiprock Pinnacle, just inside the border of the Navajo Nation in the northwest corner of New Mexico.
One of Ashlynne’s brothers, Ryan Begay, told the audience at her funeral that he drove around the monolith for hours in the darkness, looking for his sister. He said he asked for an alert at 10:30pm and grew more upset with each passing hour.
“I really wish that this alert went out a lot sooner,” he said, prompting strenuous applause.
Ashlynne’s younger brother told police that he tried to find his sister after the man left him at another spot in the desert. Then he ran for help and was spotted by a couple, Ella and Benny Yazzie, who were driving along the highway and took him to police.
The boy was so distraught that he could not describe what happened with enough detail to focus the search, they said.
Navajo families extend far beyond bloodlines, through traditional clan systems that foster kinship among tribal members, and the law enforcement delays did not prevent about 100 community members from searching for Ashlynne, driving across the open desert long into the night.
On Friday, his father embraced the boy as the governor praised his bravery and said Ashlynne would have been proud.
Later in the service, images from across the country of people releasing balloons, holding vigils and singing in remembrance of Ashlynne flashed on the overhead screen.
Rick Nez, president of the Navajo Nation’s San Juan Chapter, urged people to make sure their families know how much they care about them.
“Don’t ever forget to go to bed and rise in the morning and say, ‘I love you my precious child,’” Nez said.
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