BILLINGS – A man who attempted to clean up a murder scene on the Crow Indian Reservation was sentenced today to 70 months in prison to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said. He was also ordered to pay over $11,771.00 in restitution.

William Robert Jay Howe, Jr., 41, pleaded guilty in August 2025 to one count of accessory after the fact.

U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided.

The government alleged in court documents that on January 18, 2023, a gunshot victim was driven to the emergency room in Crow Agency, Montana. The driver initially lied to law enforcement about where the victim was found. Some days later, law enforcement learned the location of the shooting. After obtaining a federal search warrant for the SD card from exterior security cameras from a residence in the area, law enforcement discovered footage of the victim being picked up and put in the vehicle used to drive him to the emergency room. The camera footage shows Howe and another individual cleaning the snow-covered area where the victim had been lying moments earlier by moving snow with a shovel, broom, hands, and feet. The footage also appears to show Howe and another male picking up one or more items from the snow-covered area. And it shows Howe ostensibly taking an item from the crime scene and walking across the street with it.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Zeno Baucus prosecuted the case. The FBI and BIA conducted the investigation.

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