Two Sentenced for Helping Conceal Murder of Navajo Man
Marlin Leon Nez and Megan Ashley Yarber received time-served sentences after pleading guilty to misprision of a felony.
2 reports on this incident · first at Aug 21, 2026, 2:15 p.m. ET
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We last searched for new coverage of this at Aug 21, 2026, 3:10 p.m. ET — checked 35 min ago.
Earlier reports
Aug 21, 2026, 2:15 p.m. ETFirst report
Two Sentenced for Concealing Murder of Navajo Man
On Aug. 21, 2026, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona announced that two Arizona residents were sentenced for their roles in concealing the murder of a Navajo man. Marlin Leon Nez, 45, and Megan Ashley Yarber, 36, both of Chinle, were sentenced on Aug. 17, 2026, by U.S. District Judge Michael T. Liburdi to time-served sentences after serving more than 16 months in prison. They were also ordered to pay restitution to the victim's family for search expenses.
According to court documents, on July 11, 2024, Wendell Draper shot and killed the victim in Nez's residence. Nez helped Draper wrap the body and load it into the victim's vehicle. Draper then buried the victim in a shallow grave and set the vehicle on fire. Yarber picked Draper up from the site and drove him back to the residence. Nez and Yarber knew Draper had committed a federal felony but failed to notify authorities. They pleaded guilty to misprision of a felony.
The victim's family reported him missing and searched for weeks before his body was recovered. Draper was later shot and killed after allegedly pointing a firearm at law enforcement officers attempting to arrest him. The FBI Phoenix Division's Gallup office and the Navajo Police Department investigated; the U.S. Attorney's Office prosecuted.
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Revision history
- Version 121 Aug 2026, 18:22current
First published.
- Version 121 Aug 2026, 18:15current
First published.
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