Fort Hall man indicted after standoff

A Fort Hall man was indicted by a federal grand jury in connection with an 18-hour-long standoff with police in September.

This week, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced Raymond Hye Broncho, 39, is facing two counts of assault on an officer, three counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, two counts of illegal possession of a firearm by a drug user, one count of using firearms in the commission of violent crimes, as well as forfeiture of the SKS assault rifle and the .22 caliber rifle involved in the incident.

The attorney’s office said Broncho pointed a rifle at police officers and fired multiple shots at them in the Sept. 20 standoff in Fort Hall Indian Reservation.

Officers had been called to the home on Lodge Pine Street at 3 a.m. after neighbors reported gunshots. The standoff ended peacefully around 9 p.m.

During the standoff, neighbors were evacuated. Responding to the incident were Fort Hall police, a seven-county Southeast Idaho SWAT team and the FBI.

Authorities said Broncho was under the influence of a controlled substance.

Assault on an officer is punishable by up to 20 years imprisonment. Assault with a dangerous weapon and unlawful possession of a firearm by a drug user are punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment. The three crimes are also punishable by a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. Use of firearms in the commission of a violent crime is punishable by a 10-year sentence, consecutive to all other sentences, the attorney’s office said.

A date for his arraignment has not yet been set.