Jury selection concluded for the day Thursday in a trial for two former Pechanga tribal employees accused of diverting $4 million in insurance funds into their personal bank accounts. $4 million is 100 times less than what the Pechanga Tribe has stolen from it's own members.
Prospective jurors were ordered back to court Monday.
James Riley, 48, of Corona and Ryan Robinson, 41, of Temecula are each charged with grand theft and commercial burglary.
Riley is additionally charged with money laundering, according to court documents. He faces 15 years in prison if convicted on all charges.
Robinson -- the Pechanga tribe's former chief financial officer -- faces 10 years.
We are still waiting to hear if there will be charges in a theft of Pechanga slot machines. Former Pechanga Chairwoman, Jennie Miranda has been dealt with at tribal level. Miranda is the brother of Andrew Masiel, head of the Native American Caucus of the Democratic Party.
24 comments:
Wow! That headline really roped me in, but I was totally let down. I thought the defendants were gonna be JM, et al.
So Jennie won't be facing federal charges? Thats a crock if I read it correctly.
Actually Jennie Miranda is the sister of Andrew Masiel, not, obviously, the brother of Andrew.
If she and the others who have been disenfranchised have stolen more than Riley and Robinson did, what is wrong with this picture that these guys are thrown under the bus and the tribe somehow doesn't want crooked tribal members prosecuted?
Does sovereignty trump justice?
I'm sure the Feds won't let what they've done go. They are always slow to prosecute. It took them a decade to bring down the Soboba chairman.
On the bright side, these criminals now live with the knowledge that they will be going down.
The BIA needs to look deeper into tribal actions. Crimes are not protected by sovereignty.
The Pechanga Tribe has acted against their constitution. It's time for the Bureau to put on it's big boy pants.
Don't you think these guys on trial have told any tax evading the tribe has done to the Feds?...these guys had to know some dirt on the tribe in exchange for lighter sentences...and I heard that th Saboba chief was set up by someone he trusted in the Casino, so I'm sure the same will eventually happen at Pechanga and Pala.
Theres alot here that people don't no about whats going on with pechanga.
Right Fletcher,...
I remember Mark Macarro saying that the Soboba chairman Bobby Salgado was his mentor. Well Bobby went down so is Mark next?
Former Pechanga Chairwoman, Jennie Miranda has been dealt with at tribal level.
Not "EVEN!" There is something "Shady" going on here! Is this some sort of "Manuver," knowing full well, all the $$$ she has stolen? To allow her to keep her "Health Insurance," and who knows what other "Perks?" Has she been "Banished?"..."NO!" And why not? So what does that tell you? Do the(Pechanga Criminals) think that this will be the "End" of any type of further investigation? And do they think by doing this little "Jesture" of "Slapping Her Hand," it will stop her from bring out all the "Dirt" you know she has on all of them? Will the "Fed's" be satisfied with the (Pechanga Criminals) sanction on her? An that is what it is, "A Sanction On Her!" Take away the "PerCap" only, for they know she doesn't need it, and leave everything else in tact. What type of "Game" is that? Let us hope that this will "Blow Up" in their face, and finally "Justice" will be done! I think that this has finally gone to far, and the "Fed" will have to act. "OR WILL THEY?" And, I guess, it all boils down to if anyone is getting "Paid Off?" Would it, really, surprise anyone that now that the "(Pechanga Criminals) have supposedly "Delt With Her," that this will all go away? "Sovereignty," what a "Concept!"...."Eagle Eyes."
I call bull shit, their not doing anything.
What kind of chief or council would leave 7 people around who took 40 million?
60 minutes anyone?...they would love to do a story about this bullshit....wonder why no ne has pitched them?..or have you original Pechanga?
soboba chairman set up by the pala family that got thrown out of their tribe--is that true???
It's wasn't just one family that got disenrolled from PALA it was several different families from the same blood line from over 100 yrs ago
It's wasn't just one family that got disenrolled from PALA it was several different families from the same blood line from over 100 yrs ago
LISA LIng is doing a story (life on the rez) pine ridge.
Why don't they do a dirty tribe like pechanga send her a e mail the story goes on tuesday.
Correction to Anonymous 6:17 pm's comment: Margarita Britten was born over 150 years ago, not 100 years ago. I think it's important that people realize how rediculous it is that the Pala EC can attack a woman who was born over 150 years ago. The Pala EC is trying to change history by relying on the ignorance of people, but in today's internet age, it is nearly impossible to hide the truth when documents are so prevalent and readily available, with a click of a button, you can find actual census data, government records, etc.
As far as the Soboba chairman, I think the only one who set him up was himself. I read that he had been taking kick backs from several companies (real estate, valet parking, construction). He had those companies pay his credit card bills and write checks to his side business, which were bribes he collected from vendors who wanted to do business with his casino. That indictment is available to view on the internet and it says nothing about any MB descendants. I do know that Robert Smith was known to be good friends with him and even took referals from him, and I'll leave it at that.
"Correction to Anonymous 6:17 pm's comment: Margarita Britten was born over 150 years ago, not 100 years ago. I think it's important that people realize how rediculous it is that the Pala EC can attack a woman who was born over 150 years ago. The Pala EC is trying to change history by relying on the ignorance of people, but in today's internet age, it is nearly impossible to hide the truth when documents are so prevalent and readily available, with a click of a button, you can find actual census data, government records, etc."
That is exactly what Pechanga did to my family, the Hunters of Pechanga, they effectively disenrolled our ancestor Paulina Hunter, who died in 1899, by falsely claiming that she wasn't a member of the Band so now all of her descendants are out of the tribe.
Despite that we have notarized testimony from a recognized Pechanga elder, Antonio Ashman who said prior to the first written enrollment of 1979 when asked, "did you know Paulina Hunter as a member of the Band?" He responded, "yes, I knew her as such."
Note: Mr. Ashman is called a vaunted (much praised) elder on Pechanga's own official web site where he recounts the eviction of the people from the old Temecula Indian village sites in 1875. So chairman Mark Macarro believes what Ashman had to say about the 1875 eviction but not what he had to say about our ancestor?
This is backed up by testimony from other Pechanga elders during the probate in 1915 for Paulina Hunter's land allotment, allotment number 62 on the Pechanga reservation, and by the expert hired by the Pechanga enrollment committee to research Paulina Hunter's geneology, Dr. John Johnson of the Muesum of Natural History in San Barbara, Ca, who said that according to surviving historical documents Paulina Hunter was a full blooded Pechanga Indian. Dr. Johnson also said there is no credible evidence that shows that Paulina Hunter wasn't a Pechanga Indian.
The so called evidence against us?
Some elders alive now who said that the Hunter family were never considered legitimate tribal members which is refuted, in addition to elders such as Mr. Ashman and others who lived in the historical period of the late 1800s, by also other current Pechanga tribal elders who said they have always recognized the Hunters as legitimate tribal members.
So just like Pala who is in effect picking on a dead woman, Margarita Brittain, Pechanga also picked on a dead woman, Paulina Hunter, to get her descendants out of the the tribe.
"Some elders alive now who said that the Hunter family were never considered legitimate tribal members..."
"NEVER" ?!! Then why did they also sign letters welcoming new coming Hunters back into the Tribe? They stated "never" but these very same people also wrote letters welcoming Hunters back into the Tribe.
Yes, what Luiseno says is true, some of the very people who said in 2006 that the Hunters never truly belonged while enrollment committee signed date stamped official approval letters for Hunter family members who enrolled during open enrollement between 1979 and 1996 as well as original enrollment cards, years before the casino I might add.
So if we never belonged, then why sign official documents saying that we did belong?
What happened in the period around and after 1996?
The tribe got the casino.
And that is where the trouble started...."THE CASINO!....And those "Treaonous Parasites Saw...$$$ signs!" Hell with "Heritage and Birthrights... Eagle Eyes."
What kind of chief or council would leave 7 people around who took 40 million?
Obviously the "Macarro Cartel!" This inner circle of "Corrupt Criminal's" are attempting "Damage Control" and cover up their "Indiscreations" and using "Sovereignty" to make it happen...."Eagle Eyes."
Both Ryan Robinson and James Riley will be exonerated. There is no law that was broken. It's interesting knowing all the FACTS and seeing how this is unfolding. Don't believe everything you hear from the D.A. or others. It's interesting how the $4 Million in commissions was supposedly stolen. So if James made 10% commission, would he then still be stealing. Insurance law allows brokers to charge 90% if they want to, LEGALLY, and they DO NOT have to disclose their fee's. Also, documentation proves James made a lot of money from writing Pechanga's insurance since the late 90's. So why would it be necessary to bribe? Case dismissed.
He better not be exonerated! If you know all the facts then you know hes a thief, liar and would steal the shirt off his grandmothers back. This isnt his first time around the block with being accused of such things, yet he lives in a fsntasy land thinking hes above the law.
A thief and liar??? Really? I wonder who's forcing you to drink the koolaid. The lowest price per million for coverage in August of 2006 was $60k/per million in coverage. Mr. Riley was able to obtain the insurance for under $28k/per million in coverage. They got a max of $320 million DIC coverage(due to the market). Do the math. They would have paid over $19.2 million and Pechanga is squabbling over the great deal of $11.6 Million.(INCLUDING his fee's). So PLEASE indulge me and show me the other times he was accused of "such things"?
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