Special Prosecutor Kyle T. Nayback refiled ethics charges against Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren on February 3, 2026, in Window Rock after a previous complaint was dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. The new complaint alleges violations related to the 2025 budget process and personnel decisions, including improper pressure on the Navajo Nation controller to authorize restricted fund transfers, officials said.
The refiling follows a series of legal setbacks for Special Prosecutor Kyle T. Nayback, who initially filed the ethics complaint against President Buu Nygren on November 21, 2025. That original complaint alleged multiple violations of the Navajo Nation Ethics in Government Law spanning from January 2023 to May 2025, including improper conduct related to the 2025 budget process and personnel decisions. The complaint sought several remedies, including Nygren’s immediate removal from office, a five-year disqualification from holding public office, forfeiture of compensation for 30 days to one year, a public reprimand, and restitution, according to court records.
The second amended ethics complaint, filed February 3, 2026, alleges six violations of the Navajo Nation Ethics in Government Law tied specifically to the 2025 budget process and personnel decisions.
The initial complaint was dismissed on December 19, 2025, by the Special Division of the Window Rock District Court, which ruled it lacked jurisdiction to hear the case. Special Prosecutor Nayback stated that the court did not consider the charges or make any ruling on the alleged violations. President Nygren called the ruling an end to a “political witch hunt,” according to a statement released by his office. The dismissal was based on jurisdictional grounds rather than the merits of the allegations.
Officials said the complaint accuses President Nygren of improperly pressuring the Navajo Nation controller to authorize transfers of restricted funds. The original controller reportedly declined to approve the transfers, citing legal and budgetary limits, and was subsequently terminated from the position. A replacement controller later approved the questioned fund transfers, which allegedly involved improper reallocation of funds without prior federal approval, sources confirmed.
The complaint also details allegations that President Nygren improperly hired his father-in-law, John Blackwater Jr., to a political at-will position despite Blackwater lacking the required qualifications. Special Prosecutor Nayback alleges that Nygren ordered subordinates to alter Blackwater’s job application to falsely reflect appropriate qualifications, violating multiple sections of the Navajo Nation Ethics in Government Law.
On May 7, 2026, the Navajo District Court dismissed the second amended ethics complaint, again citing jurisdictional issues. The court ruled that the case was filed in the wrong forum and that Navajo law requires ethics complaints to be handled through the Ethics and Rules Committee process rather than through the court system. The court found that Special Prosecutor Nayback failed to properly establish the court’s authority to act on the complaint. The dismissal was characterized as procedural and did not address the substance of the allegations.
President Nygren has also challenged the validity of the 2010 Special Prosecutor law under which Nayback operates. Nygren’s legal team argues that the 2010 rewrite of the law relied on a false emergency declaration and unlawfully claimed executive powers in violation of the Fundamental Law of the Navajo Nation. They also cited violations of the 1989 Title 2 Amendments. However, the court ruled that constitutional challenges to the Special Prosecutor law must be brought in a separate lawsuit rather than as part of the ethics complaint proceedings, according to court documents.
The ongoing legal disputes highlight tensions over the scope of the Special Prosecutor’s authority and the proper procedures for handling ethics complaints within the Navajo Nation government. The Ethics and Rules Committee is expected to review the latest complaint, as the court has indicated that it is the appropriate body to consider such matters under Navajo law.
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