Native American Press / Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 2006-05-12

              INDEX
NEWS AROUND INDIAN COUNTRY 2
NEWS BRIEFS 3
COMMENTARY/EDITORIALS 4
CLASSIFIEDS 7
Grant helps
American
Indians become
administrators
page 3
Former Ney aide and
Abramoff partner
pleads guilty
page 5
A demand for public
apology and correction
page 4
Francis "Chunky"
Brun responds to
allegations
page 4
Red Lake - Rise up,
take back your rez
from Buck and his
drug crowd
page 4
2005 Red Lake gaming audits reveal revenue and
income down, expenses up
VOICE      OF      THE      PEOPLE
By Bill Lawrence
The auditing firm of Brady
Martz & Associates, P.C. of
Grand Forks, North Dakota, recently completed the 2005 Red
Lake Gaming Enterprise audits.
The audits cover the three tribally
owned and operated casinos at
Red Lake, Thief River Falls and
Warroad.
My analysis ofthe audits shows
2005 revenues down and, expenses up, resulting in reduced
operating and net income for the
year. The figures are below:
Another concern with the audited statements, occurs in Note
6 Related Party Transactions on
page 6.
This page, under the heading
listed above, shows a total amount
of $3,459,420 was disbursed in
2005 from the casinos to the tribe
and "vendors on behalf of various
related individuals and organizations..."
Then on the Statement of Cash
Flow for 2005, listed under CASH
FLOWS USED BY INVESTING
ACTIVITIES is an item called
REVENUES                    2005
Gaming, food,
Concessions, gift shop,
Hotel and water park         $39,519,753
Decrease of $389,291
2004
$39,909,044
COSTS & EXPENSES
Same as above - plus
Depreciation & Amorit-
ization & Interest Expense $36,122,582
Increase of $599,096
$35,523,558
OPERATING INCOME   $3,387,171
Decrease of $988,387
$4,385,558
NET INCOME                  $3,664,679
Decrease $1,153,110
$3,817,789
Distributions in the amount of
$2,545,220. This is a change from
brevious years, when these two figures, with the same category headings, would have been identical.
The audit indicates they paid the
amount of $3,459,420, as indicated above, but here the amount
in The Statement of Cash Flow
is $2,545,220. The difference between these two figures then also
shows up on the Statement of Cash
Flow as Distributions Converted to
Debt in the amount of $914,200.
My question is what has happened
here? If the casinos allocated the
larger amount of $3,459,420 to
Disbursements, and didn't pay
out the entire amount, leaving a
balance of $914,200, it seems to
me the auditors should have reported this figure as an Accounts
Payable amount from the casinos
to the tribes.
These pages have not been
published in this issue in order to
conserve space but are available
through the Press/ON office.
Please refer now to the published
chart entided "NOTE 8 LONG-
TERM DEBT published adjacent
to this article. This document
lists the individual loans held by
the Tribe. Total indebtedness to
AUDITS to page 6
FBI asked to investigate Luke Wilson's activities in
Spring Election
By Bill Lawrence
In a letter to Special Federal
Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Agent Asher Silkey of the Bemidji office, Frank Bibeau requests
an investigation into alleged vote
buying by Luke Wilson. Nate
Pederson, of the U.S. Attorney's
Office in MinneapoUs, requested
Mr. Bibeau contact the FBI with
information concerning Mr. Wilson's activities on April 4, 2006,
the day of the Primary Election
for the six Minnesota Chippewa
Tribes.
The letter (printed in its entirety
on page 5 of today's issue) discusses a check written by Luke
Wilson, on that date, allegedly
to a prospective voter. The check
was turned over to Press/ON in
response to an ad published after
the election. The ad offered a
reward for information regarding
Mr. Wilson's activities at a Cass
Lake rest area on the date of the
Primary Election, April 4. A copy
of the check was also sent to the
FBI.
Callers on the day of the election stated that Luke Wilson, operating out of a Recreational Vehicle
(RV) parked at the rest stop, was
"buying votes." A notice in the
Cass Lake Times stated that Cass
Lake pohce had investigated an
unidentified RV in connection
with suspicious activity on April
4 and discovered a political candidate as the source.
Mr. Bibeau, seeking to check
out the reports, drove to the rest
stop. The RV was no longer at
the site but was discovered parked
behind the Palace Casino. The
three individuals in Mr. Bibeau's
vehicle saw Mr. Michael Garbow,
Leech Lake (LL) Tribal Attorney,
and Mr. Rod Northbird, LL Gaming Security Director, inside the
RV.
The letter requests an FBI investigation into the possibility of
vote buying. The writer advises
that "similar election problems
on White Earth Reservation were
prosecuted and the court determined then that those who control
the cash-box, control the ballot
box." Additionally, the FBI is
specifically requested to search
Mr. Wilson's account for more
instances of checks having been
issued to individuals on that day,
and follow up interviews with the
check recipients to discover the
reason for the issuance of those
checks.
See page 5 for the text of the
complete letter.
Lawsuits filed in Leech Lake Tribal Court
By Bill Lawrence
Complaints (the entire text of
which are published on page 5 of
today's issue) have been filed in
Leech Lake Tribal Court on behalf
of Wallace Storbakken and Election Board Members, Kay Jackson, April Greene and Louella
Novak. Sgt. Gilbert Mitchell, the
Leech Lake Tribal Police Department, Luke Wilson, Lyman Losh,
George Goggleye and Donald
Finn are named Defendants in the
Storbakken suite.
The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
Council Members, Sally Morrison
(Leech Lake Executive Director),
and Gary Frazer (Minnesota Chippewa Tribe Executive Director)
are named Defendants in the Election Board case. Burton "Luke"
Wilson and Donald "Mick" Finn,
personally and individually, were
also named by Plaintiffs in the
suit, Kay Jackson, April Greene
and Louella Novak. Additionally,
Molly Miron, as an individual and
employee ofthe Bemidji Pioneer,
was named as a Defendant.
Mr. Storbakken alleges that the
Defendants conspired to intimidate plaintiffs and others by use
of pubhc displays of pohce power
and unnecessary and excessive
force in restraint; that Defendants
unlawfully arrested and incarcerated plaintiff; deprived Plaintiff
of his civil rights and liberties.
The complaint further charges
the Defendants acted outside the
scope of their authority.
Plaintiff requested an award
of $250,000 in damages and an
award of attorney fees.
Members of the Election Board
charge wrongful termination
and defamation in their removal
from office during the first Special Election to fill the Secretary/Treasurer position in 2004.
They assert that Tribal Council
Member Defendants conspired to
sensationalize the dismissal ofthe
three plaintiffs from the election
board and to create fear on the
part of subsequent Board Members. Plaintiffs also state that
Defendants deprived them, and
by extension other band members,
of equal protection ofthe laws, or
of equal privileges and immunities under the laws with regard to
members freedom to attend pubhc
meetings free of fear of political
use of police powers to oppress
and silence members."
Jackson, Greene and Novak
further allege that Molly Miron,
named as an employee of the Bemidji Pioneer, was present at the
request of the other Defendants,
and assisted in making the details
of their tennination pubhc, which
added injury to the fact of termination.
Specifically, Burton "Luke"
Wilson is charged with "improperly" telephoning election board
members in their homes. ,
Plaintiffs seek an award of
past wages to equal what they
would have earned had they not
been unlawfully and prematurely
terminated, attorney fees, and an
"award of punitive damages for
the intentional infliction of emotional distress and defamation."
Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior
Chippewa's financial statements
By Diane White
CASS LAKE, MN-Under
the Freedom of Information Act,
Press/ON requested from the
United States Department of the
Interior (DOI) the most recent
audited financial statements
from all Minnesota Indian tribes.
The Fond du Lac Band of Lake
Superior Chippewa's most recent
submitted financial statements
are for the time period October 1,
2003 to September 30,2004. The
Fond du Lac Tribal Council is
responsible for the management
of the Band's finances.
The auditors were McGladrey
& Pullen of Duluth. During the
course of the audit, McGladrey
examined evidence that supported the amounts and disclosures
made by the Fond du Lac Band.
In addition, McGladrey assessed
the accounting principles used
by the Band and the significant
estimates made by the Band. Finally, they evaluated the overall
financial statement presentation.
The Fond du Lac Band, a legal
separate entity, allowed only the
primary government funds to
be audited and because of that,
McGladrey states, "the govern
ment financial statements do not
purport to, and do not, present
fairly, the financial position."
However, given the funds audited, McGladrey states, "In our
opinion, the financial statements,
in all material respects, the respective financial position of
the governmental activities, each
major fund, and the aggregate
remaining fund information of
the primary government."
What McGladrey did not audit
was the Band's gaming and other
money making financial statements which means the Band
could be better off financially or
worse off financially than they
the government financial statements indicate.
McGladrey found some problems within the audit in how
the accounting procedures were
carried out at the Tribal College. They found some sloppy
bookkeeping. For example:
3 payables (amounts owed by
the Tribal College to a vendor),
which totaled $52,545, were not
paid for over a one-year period.
Then they found the Tribal Col-
FINANCE to page 6
The Windigo
still stalking in
South Mpis
By Vincent Hill-Mpls
The mythical cannibal eating
giant ofthe Ojibwe known as the
WINDIGO manifested himself
again on April 26. 2006.
He can often be seen at the
Wolves Den coffee shop on
East Franklin. If he is not present in body, or spirit, order,
peace, and progress is made in
circles of discussion to further
civic pride in the larger chimook
community, or specifically to
further the "Anishinabe Cause."
His brother, perhaps, known as
"The Prophet" (you know like
the famous Tecumseh, and his
brother, (The Prophet.,) can also
be seen lounging outside the
Wolves Den. I don't think the
Large gray ma.ingun (wolf) that
guards the Wolves Den likes this
a-kii-wen-zii (old man) character.
I wonder why?
An outspoken activist being
groomed by the American Indian
Movement (ATM) was verbally
threatened outside the Wolves
Den coffee shop two weeks
ago. The aggrieved does not
WINDIGO to page 4
web page: www.press-on.net
We Support Equal Opportunity For All People
A weekly publication.  Copyright, Native American Press, 2006
Founded in 1988
Volume 18 Issue 46
May 12, 2006
Sheri BearKing-Baker poses for a photo Friday, May 5,2006, before a graduation ceremony
atthe United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck, N.D. BearKing-Baker, an administrator
at the college, oversees the financial part of a program that is helping American Indians
become school administrators. Article on page 3. (AP Photo/Will Kincaid)
Former White
Earth tribal
chairman
placed on
probation
Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS - A federal judge placed former White
Earth Tribal Chairman Darrel
"Chip" Wadena on probation
for five years Wednesday for
conspiracy to commit mail
fraud in an interstate vehicle
title washing scheme.
Wadena, 67, of Naytahwaush,
had pleaded guilty under a plea
agreement in February. U.S.
District Judge Paul Magnuson
also ordered him to pay an
undetermined amount of restitution to fraud victims.
"I made a mistake, and I
apologize," Wadena told the
judge. Wadena was a target of
an investigation that discovered
junk vehicles were being purchased in Florida and brought
to Minnesota, where they were
resold with fraudulent titles.
He was accused of conspiring with Florida used-car
dealer Guillermo Gonzalez to
defraud state tax officials and
car buyers. Gonzales, who also
pleaded guilty to a conspiracy
charge, is awaiting sentencing.
Wadena could have been
sentenced to up to 21-months
in prison, but Magnuson said he
decided not to imprison Wadena
because he undergoes kidney
dialysis treatment three times a
week and cares for a son with a
disability.
He also will be better able to
repay his victims if he's not in
prison, the judge said.
Wadena was White Earth
tribal chairman for 20 years
before his tribal election defeat
in 1996. That same year, he was
convicted of 15 charges and was
ordered to pay $585,000 to the
Tribe. None of it has ever been
paid. He spent more than three
years in prison. Wadena ran
again for the chairmanship last
year but lost to Erma Vizenor.
RED LAKE ELECTION SET FOR MAY 17
By Bill Lawrence
Red Lake Polls will be open Wednesday, May 17, 2006,
from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Absentee ballots are due by
8:00 p.m. on election day. The following candidates were
certified bythe Red Lake Council:
Chairman
Ponemah Representative
Francis "Chunky" Brun
Daniel Crowe
Floyd "Buck" Jourdain
Earl Fairbanks
Judy Roy
Clifford C. Hardy
Bobby Whitefeather
Greg J. Kingbird, Sr.
Rudy Kingbird
Secretary
Gary L. Nelson, Sr.
Kathryn "Jody" Beaulieu
Harlan W Stillday
Rob "Bob" Beaulieu
Stuart Desjarlait
Red Lake Representative
Georgia L. Downwind
Steve Bellanger
Preston H. Graves
Geraldine "Jaye" Brun
Eugene D. "Sonny" Johnson, Jr
Donald "Don Dez" Desjarlait
Joyce (Oliver) Roy
Lee Lussier, Jr.
James "Jimmy" White
Donna Sumner
Donna J. Whitefeather
Little Rock Representative
Treasurer
Karen Norris-Barrett
Darrell G. Seki, Sr.
Harlan R. Beaulieu
LaNae Barrett Pemberton
Alice Morgan Benaise
Gerald W. Blue
Redby Representative
Duane G. Cobenais, Jr.
Donald L Bellanger
Doug Desjarlait
Maureen (Thunder) Lyons
William "Billy" Greene
Rochelle "Chelle" Parkhurst
Arlan W. Jourdain, Sr.
Julius "Toady" Thunder
Brian "Bruno" Jourdain
Tom "Jambi" Westbrook
Chris Jourdain
Charley Norris
Lydell Jon Roberts
Edward "Beeb" Strong
Leech Lake going belly up
By Diane White
Bemidji, MN—Official documents from the Leech Lake Band
of Ojibwe's Tribal Council dated
March 31,2006 indicate the General Fund checking account is in
"serious overdraft" and warns the
Division and Program Managers
and the Tribal Council that continued spending outside of their
designated budgets would result
in a cash flow crisis. The memo
written and signed by Interim Executive Director, Rodney White
ordered, "effective immediately
all personal loans, donations,
General Fund travel, new hires,
and any other cash outflow should
be avoided. This will be in effect
until further notice."
On April 3, 2006, Chairman
GeorgeGoggleye, Jr. conveys to
the Tribal Council that he met
with the Band's Controller and
Executive Director and was apprised of the Band's financial
situation. He states, "over the
next two weeks there is a strong
likelihood that the Band will begin to incur overdrafts based on
our funds being depleted in our
Bank accounts if our current rate
of spending continues."
Goggleye requested the Tribal
Council's assistance on this vital
and important matter and called
an emergency meeting between
the Tribal Council, the Band's
budget team, and the Division
Directors to meet on Monday,
April 10,2006.
On April 19, 2006, a check
was issued to Bonita Desjarlais,
d/b/a Northern Wind Arts, Bena,
BELLY to page 6