Goshute member ordered to repay $17,300 to bank
He and 3 others took tribal funds by using a fake court order
During a restitution hearing, U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell ordered Sammy Blackbear to pay back $17,300 to the bank.
Last March Blackbear pleaded guilty to one count of theft of assets from an Indian tribal organization. Blackbear, along with three other band members, used a fake court order to withdraw bank funds, of which prosecutors say Blackbear was responsible for $25,000.
Blackbear's attorney, David Finlayson, said Blackbear re-deposited $4,367 and used other funds to pay bills associated with the band. However, Finlayson acknowledged that $10,000 went into Blackbear's personal account for travel and other expenses and $7,300 went to pay attorney fees that were not authorized by the band.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stanley Olsen said although Blackbear was charged with taking funds from the Goshute band, the band was made financially whole through a $44,000 settlement with Zions Bank, and that it is the bank that deserves restitution.
Blackbear was charged in December 2003 along with fellow band members Marlinda Moon, Miranda Wash and tribal attorney Duncan Steadman. Those three have pleaded not guilty and await trial next September.
Wash, Blackbear and Moon claimed they were elected tribal heads during an election in September 2001 that was not recognized by the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs. The group is part of a faction opposed to current Skull Valley Goshute Band Chairman Leon Bear. For the past several years, the band, who make their home in Utah's western desert, has been plagued by infighting and accusations of corruption.
Last June, Bear was ordered by a federal judge to pay the IRS $13,101 in unpaid taxes and the Goshute Band $31,500 for duplicate stipends he billed the tribe. Bear was also placed on three years probation.
Bear is best known for his support of storing high-level nuclear waste on Goshute land, which has raised cries of protest not only from other band members, but from state leaders.
Finlayson said many tribal members have been frustrated by the infighting and the fact that there hasn't been an election in years. Out of that frustration, Finlayson said Blackbear and others tried to "reclaim" tribal funds they felt were not being used properly.
Blackbear is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 13. Prosecutors say they will attempt to get further restitution for Zions Bank when the three remaining defendants go to trial.
E-mail: gfattah@desnews.com
You can be the first to comment on this story.