The Quapaw Nation of OK on Monday filed felonious charges against its former chairman.
The Nation is accusing King John l Berrey inward the tribal court of defalcation and other crimes. Accompanying the felon complaint is a civil cause that seeks $7 million, plus damages, from Berrey and several of his former faculty members, claiming humbug and unjust enrichment.
Berrey “consistently ill-treated his say-so as Chairman past using tribal finances and assets for his possess personal do good and the welfare of those around him,” according to a intelligence release from the tribe.
As the Nation’s leader for 20 years, Berrey oversaw much of its economic development. The tribe is wealthy, owning deuce casinos on its reservation in Oklahoma, the Quapaw Casino, and the Downstream Casino Resort, as advantageously as a golf resort hotel in Missouri.
A tertiary casino, the Saracen Resort, became the for the first time purpose-built gambling casino inward Land of Opportunity when it opened inwards Pine Bluff in 2019.
$34 Million ‘Misspent’
The $350 zillion Saracen grammatical construction unconscious process of late became the dependent of a forensic audit following a whistling blower’s complaint. Auditors discovered that $34 zillion inwards tribal cash in hand may get been misspent on “pay raises, bonuses, severing compensate and donations.”
According to the auditors, both Berrey and the Nation’s former escritoire treasurer, Tamara Smiley-Reeves, siphoned the money from the Downstream Development Authority, without the favorable reception of the tribal business organization committee, a violation of the tribe’s code.
The complaints abstract various levels of involvement and quislingism betwixt the individuals to compensate unity another illegal bonuses totaling millions of dollars and illegally step-up meanspirited make up and benefits,” the federation of tribes claimed inwards its tidings release.
“The investigation also found measured attempts to conceal the wrongful doings by either omitting info from official encounter transactions or keeping entropy inward functionary tribal records purposely vague.”
Berrey Countersues for Libel
Berrey failed to get under one's skin re-elected as tribal chairman finally July. He denies allegations of wrongdoing, and on Monday filed a cause inwards Grover Cleveland County District County accusing electric current Quapaw Carry Nation officials of libel.
In a comment to Arkansas Business, he criticized the intelligence vent sent out Monday.
“It’s embarrassing that the people who brought this complaint require it to follow come out inward the broader public,” Berrey said.
There’s a way of life to address complaints in the tribal government activity and that’s where it ought to stay. This is all politically motivated, and it’s false.”
“My figure i end at present is to allay the fears and anxiousness that our tribal members are feeling o'er all of this nonsense,” he added. “I’ll beat up it inward court, and I’ll return to the Business Committee for the goodness of our people.”
Berrey said he is planning to bleed for vice chairman this summer.