FBI probing death of Yaqui chairman’s brother as homicide

By Brady McCombs
Arizona Daily Star

The FBI is investigating the New Year's Day death of the brother of the chairwoman of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe as a homicide, an FBI spokeswoman in Phoenix said Tuesday.

Gabriel Frias, the 32-year-old brother of chairwoman Herminia Frias, died from a shotgun blast to the midsection, an autopsy performed Tuesday by the Pima County Medical Examiner's Office revealed, said Deborah McCarley, an FBI spokeswoman in Phoenix.

The father of three was found shot outside a residential area on the reservation southwest of Tucson early New Year's Day morning, she said. He was conscious when the first responders arrived but died a short time later at about 4 a.m., she said. He was shot more than once, but she wouldn't say how many times.

The FBI remained tight-lipped about the events leading up to the shooting, possible suspects or motives, citing the need to protect the investigation, McCarley said. No one has been arrested, she said.

The Frias family, meanwhile, was making preliminary plans for a wake on Sunday and a funeral on Monday, said Pilar Thomas, interim attorney general for the tribe. The arrangements have not been finalized, she said.

Gabriel Frias, the youngest of six children, is survived by his parents and his three children — a 12-year-old son, a 2-year-old daughter and a 3-week-old son, Herminia Frias said.

Herminia Frias, 33, who became the tribe's first female leader in June 2004, plans to take some time off to be with her family, Thomas said. Tribal government matters will continue as usual with the other three executive officers handling her duties, she said.

The tribe has 14,600 enrolled members with nearly 4,000 of them living on the reservation. The tribe has 1,395 acres off West Valencia Road and South Camino de Oeste.