This article appeared in the Fresno Bee on August 17th, 2012. The casino is the Thunder Valley Casino owned by the United Auburn Indian Casino. For those keeping tabs on this kind of stuff you may recall Howard Dickstein is an attorney for United Auburn.
The article is titled:
3 charged with defrauding California tribe of $18M By DON THOMPSON - Associated Press
Here are a couple of excerpts:
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Three men have been indicted on federal
charges of defrauding a casino-operating Indian tribe of more than $18
million through a kickback scheme involving the tribal administrator,
federal prosecutors said Friday.
##
They are charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud
and money laundering in indictments unsealed Friday. The indictment
charges that they inflated bills related to a construction project that
included new headquarters for the tribe.
Volen, the contractor, is
alleged to have paid about $7.5 million in kickbacks to Hinz.
Prosecutors say Hinz, the quality-control expert, then used part of his
money to buy tribal administrator Baker a Lake Tahoe vacation home, a
$54,000 in-ground pool, a $70,000 BMW and a trip to Hawaii, among other
things.
In March, the Internal Revenue Service moved to seize 23
properties, including vacation homes in Lake Tahoe and Maui, as part of
the investigation.
Read The Full Article Here
Friday, August 24, 2012
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Margarita Brittain - Fullblood Kupa Indian
This is an informational booklet on Margarita Brittain. She was a fullblood Kupa (Cupa, Cupeno) Indian from Warner's Hot Springs. Her and her children were removed from the village of Kupa at Warner's Hot Springs in 1903 during the Cupeno Trail of Tears. Margarita and her children received allotments at Pala and became part of the Pala Band of Mission Indians.
162 of Margarita Brittain's descendents were wrongly disenrolled from their tribe by Pala's Executive Committee. The preponderance of evidence demonstrates Margarita Brittain was a fullblood Kupa Indian and her descendents are entitled to be enrolled at Pala. The BIA Agrees.
Margarita Brittain Booklet
162 of Margarita Brittain's descendents were wrongly disenrolled from their tribe by Pala's Executive Committee. The preponderance of evidence demonstrates Margarita Brittain was a fullblood Kupa Indian and her descendents are entitled to be enrolled at Pala. The BIA Agrees.
Margarita Brittain Booklet
Saturday, August 18, 2012
BIA Recommends All 162 Pala Members Remain Enrolled
I am posting this again as I think it is important.
Bureau of Indian Affairs Pacific Regional Director Recommends All 162 Disenfranchised Pala Members Be Enrolled
Bureau of Indian Affairs Pacific Regional Director Recommends All 162 Disenfranchised Pala Members Be Enrolled
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