one South Dakota The active pilot was arrested on federal charges after authorities said he murdered a missing Native American woman at a military base.
Quinterius Chappelle, 24, is based in Airman Basic in Ellsworth air force The base is charged with second-degree murder in the death of 21-year-old Sahela Toka Win Sangrait.
Chappelle appeared before U.S. District Judge Daneta L. Wollmann on Monday and pleaded not guilty to federal criminal proceedings.
Sahela Toka Win Sangrait was found dead after being missing by his family in 2024. (Facebook/Bernice White Swan)
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Authorities determine Sangrait Report missing August 10, 2024, “At some time in August 2024, he was murdered at the base.”
But her body was found earlier this month in a forest area near the Pennington and Custer County lines.
According to a hiker in the area, a “unbreakable” body was discovered and later learned to be the old woman of the box, and called the representative. Pennington County Sheriff’s Office.
Authorities claimed the murder occurred at Ellsworth Air Force Base. (Ellsworth Air Force Base)
The agency said there was no “identification of available information”. The cause of death has not been released.
The Missing and Murdered Unit (MMU) of the Indian Affairs Bureau who assisted in the investigation confirmed to Fox News digital numbers that Sangerat was a member of the Sioux tribe of the Chayan River.
According to the Indian Affairs Bureau, as the investigation continues, MMU’s victim service program is assisting families.
The Indian Affairs Bureau and the FBI assisted in the case. (Indian Affairs Bureau)
Ellsworth AFB officials told Fox News Digital that Chappelle was assigned to the 28th Maintenance Squadron at Ellsworth Air Force Base, and he was an aircraft inspector. He entered the service on April 30, 2019.
His discipline history, if it exists, is protected by the Privacy Act of 1974.
“First of all, our thoughts and prayers are with Sahra’s friends and family,” Colonel Derek Oakley, commander of the 28th Bomb Wing, wrote in a statement to Fox News Numbers. “We hold pilots responsible for their actions and will be punished if service personnel are found to have violated military or civil law.
“We are working closely with regional law enforcement agencies.”
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Chappelle was held by the U.S. Marshal Service at the Pennington County Jail in Rapid City, South Dakota. A trial date has not been set.
Authorities claim that Sahra Sangerat was killed at Ellsworth Air Force Base. (Ellsworth Air Force Base)
Alison Ramsdell, a South Dakota area attorney “Just 10 days after the victim’s body was discovered, this charge reflects the tenacious work of federal, state and local law enforcement professionals who seamlessly work to defeat every potential client with absolute expediency and care,” Ramsdell said. Under the criminal justice system, the charge is simply a charge, the defendant is innocent until proven guilty; in this case, facts and evidence will be filed before a federal judge and jury. Currently, our hearts are with the family and friends of the victims who have been searching for the answers for a few months, now suffering their loved ones. ”
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Other agencies that assisted the case include FBIthe Air Force Special Investigation Office, the Rapid City Police Department and the Criminal Investigation Department in South Dakota.
The FBI Minneapolis and the U.S. Air Force Special Investigation Office did not immediately respond to inquiries from Fox News numbers.
