BELCOURT, N.D. — A Belcourt man will spend the rest of his life in prison for sexually abusing two young children, a federal judge said this week.
Chief Justice Peter Welte sentenced Myron Jay Azure, 51, Monday, June 15, on two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of children, a crime that carries a minimum punishment of 30 years in prison. However, Welte gave Azure, who is an enrolled member of the Turtle Lake Band of Chippewa the maximum penalty: life in prison, according to a news release issued Tuesday.
“The children whom Azure sexually abused will always know that the justice system stood firmly at their side and fought to ensure that this defendant will never again hurt another child,” North Dakota U.S. Attorney Drew Wrigley said in a statement. “Justice has been done.”
Few details have been made public in court documents about the charges. One count says Azure sexually assaulted a child under the age of 12 beginning in October 2014. The abuse lasted through Jan. 19, 2019, according to court documents.
He abused a second child of similar age between May 1, 2019. That lasted into early August, court documents said.
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Two other charges of aggravated sexual abuse of children were dismissed as part of a plea agreement signed by Azure in December. In exchange, he pleaded guilty to the first two counts.
