Scott Williams, swilliams@wolfrivermedia.com
Leader Photo by Scott Williams Family members are wearing T-shirts honoring the memory of David Hawpetoss, who was found dead July 25 on the Menominee Nation reservation.
One month after David Hawpetoss was found dead along a road on the Menominee reservation, his family is questioning how police have handled the investigation and why no arrest has been made.
“We are very disappointed,” said Paul Marroquin, father of the 48-year-old victim, who police believe was a pedestrian killed by a hit-and-run driver.
Hawpetoss, a Menominee tribal member who lived in Gresham, was pronounced dead around 4 a.m. July 25 after his body was found along Old South Branch Road north of Keshena.
Tribal police reported finding broken car parts at the scene, and investigators a week later said they had located the suspect vehicle.
Family members say police have since slammed a tight lid on information about the case, allowing rumors to circulate that a potential suspect has ties to the Police Department.
A leader of the Menominee tribal government said he, too, is concerned about how police have conducted the investigation.
Craig Corn, a member of the tribal legislature, said he has heard the same rumors that a possible suspect in Hawpetoss’ death is personally associated with a police officer. Corn said he is considering seeking an outside agency’s review of the police investigation.
“Maybe that’s the route we need to go,” Corn said. “The family deserves an answer. They deserve justice.”
Menominee Deputy Police Chief Richard Nacotee said tribal police investigators are continuing to work the case in partnership with the FBI.
Federal agents routinely get involved with tribal investigations that could involve felony charges, Nacotee said, because the tribe’s court system is equipped to handle only misdemeanors and because state courts have no jurisdiction on the Menominee reservation.
Nacotee said he did not know if a suspect has been identified in the July 25 hit-and-run, adding that it is not unusual for investigations to take a while.
“It can take weeks or months,” he said.
FBI spokesman Leonard Peace declined to comment except to say the investigation is “an ongoing matter.”
Hawpetoss, a father of two, was found fatally injured along the roadside of Old South Branch Road just north of Bent Tree Road about 4:15 a.m. July 25. He was pronounced dead at the scene a short time later.
Autopsy results have not been released.
Family members said Hawpetoss had been visiting taverns with friends that night, but they are unsure how he got to the accident scene or where he might have been heading.
Jill Johnson, his mother, said the unexplained death has stirred rumors and speculation among tribal members and others on the reservation. Johnson said she approached the Police Department and was dissatisfied with a lack of information that officials were willing to provide to the family.
“They are reassuring me they’re doing everything they can,” she said. “They’re not telling us much more than that.”
After the suspect vehicle was located, family members heard unconfirmed reports in the community that police had apprehended a suspect who admitted to drinking and driving that night and who told investigators that his vehicle struck an unidentified object on the road. They believe the suspect was later released without being charged.
Coupled with the broken car parts recovered at the scene, family members said they cannot understand why there is not enough evidence to file charges in the death.
“Just to let a guy go, that doesn’t make sense to us,” Marroquin said.
Joleen Hawpetoss, the victim’s sister, said investigators called the family together earlier this week, but again refused to explain why the case seems to be going nowhere.
“They just talked in circles,” she said.
Tribal Police Chief Mark Waukau Sr. told The Shawano Leader three weeks ago that he wanted to dispel rumors of a police officer’s involvement in the hit-and-run. Waukau would not explain his comment, however, and he has since been unavailable to comment.
Corn, who is chairman of the legislature’s committee overseeing law enforcement, said he approached the police chief, too, for assurances that the investigation would not get “brushed under the rug.” Corn said he was unable to get any specific information.
“He assured me that things are getting done,” Corn said. “I hope for the family’s sake that that is what’s being done.”