The sad part of stories like this is that TRIBE'S could ACTUALLY do this, sell memberships, say to get more Federal dollars. The BIA would NOT stop them. IF they don't protect REAL INDIANS from extermination, why would they stop UNREAL Indians from being members? The BIA allows disenrollment of Native Americans, but do NOT question ADOPTED Indians rights as Natives.
A former Brownsville man now living in Waco will spend almost three years in prison after his conviction for selling fake memberships to an Indian tribe that isn't recognized by the federal government.
On Tuesday, a U.S. federal judge in Brownsville sentenced Humberto Reveles, 61, for defrauding more than 140 people out of thousands of dollars by offering them membership to the Yamassee tribe. He claimed the membership came with tribal documents that would allow them to remain in the U.S. despite their immigration status, officials with the U.S. Attorney's Office in Houston said.
Reveles pleaded guilty in March 2015.
He opened an office in Brownsville, where he would meet with prospective tribal members and provide them naturalization certificates, tribal identity cards and tribal driver's licenses. The documents were to be presented in support of their immigration claims, officials said.
While handing down the prison sentence, U.S. District Judge Andrew S. Hanen said selling the fake tribal memberships was "just as bad as coyotes smuggling people past the checkpoint," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
That's the same thing that's going on in Pala with Robert Smith.
ReplyDeleteSelling Tribal Membership for the votes.