Second Co-Defendant Gets 4 Years in Fatal Fort Peck ‘Slap Boxing’ Case

GREAT FALLS — Philip Ray Azure, the second co-defendant in a fatal “slap boxing” assault on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, was sentenced Tuesday to four years in federal prison for his role in the January 2024 death and a separate stabbing incident.

Azure, 22, of Wolf Point, pleaded guilty in May to assault resulting in serious bodily injury. Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris also ordered three years of supervised release following his prison term.

The sentencing follows the June guilty plea of co-defendant Roger Sylvan Bissonette III, who faces up to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced October 30 for his role in the same fatal assault that began as recreational fighting but escalated into a deadly weapons attack.

Two Separate Violent Incidents

Azure was convicted for assaults in two separate incidents, both occurring in Wolf Point on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation.

The first incident occurred March 16, 2023, when Azure was drinking with a friend at the victim’s residence. After becoming intoxicated and loud, Azure was asked to leave. When a family member began walking him out, Azure struck the person.

“John Doe confronted Azure about hitting his family member. Azure pulled out a knife and stabbed Doe in the chest and then turned and walked away without saying anything,” according to court documents.

The victim was rushed to the hospital for treatment of serious injuries and later airlifted to Billings for surgery to repair his lung. He spent a week in the hospital recovering.

Fatal ‘Slap Boxing’ Escalation

The second and fatal incident occurred January 27, 2024, when Azure and several friends, including Bissonette and a third co-defendant, were playing “slap boxing” in a Wolf Point yard with victim John Doe 2.

After the group initially separated, Doe 2 returned asking for his phone. Azure and his co-defendants confronted him in the driveway, leading to a fatal assault witnessed by multiple people.

“One witness described seeing Azure and his co-defendants hitting John Doe 2 and saw someone using a bat and someone else using a hammer,” court documents state. “A second witness saw Azure and his two co-defendants approach Doe 2 while he backed away and said all three ‘jumped’ Doe 2. That witness saw Azure use a bat during the assault.”

Doe 2 died at the scene from blunt and sharp force injuries to the head and chest, including a stab wound that perforated his sternum, heart, and esophagus.

Conflicting Accounts

When arrested the day after the fatal assault, Azure initially denied being present during the attack. He later admitted involvement but claimed he couldn’t remember details due to intoxication.

“He claimed Doe 2 had a big knife and he ultimately hit Doe 2 with a bat to stop him from using the knife,” according to prosecutors. “None of the other witnesses reported seeing Doe 2 with a knife.”

Multi-Agency Investigation

The FBI, Fort Peck Tribes Department of Law and Justice, and Wolf Point Police Department conducted the investigation. The case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a federal program targeting violent crime through law enforcement partnerships.

Azure’s four-year sentence reflects his role in both the 2023 stabbing and the fatal 2024 assault, marking another resolution in a case that transformed recreational fighting into a federal murder prosecution.