Belcourt Woman Sentenced for Theft

MINOT—Acting United States Attorney Lynn Jordheim announced that on May 3, 2010, Billie Jo Parisien Decoteau, 42, of Belcourt, North Dakota, was sentenced before United States District Court Judge Daniel L. Hovland on a charge of theft from an Indian tribal organization.

Judge Hovland sentenced Parisien Decoteau to two years of probation, restitution of $5000, and Parisien Decoteau must pay a $100 special assessment to the Crime Victim's Fund.

The incidents occurred from October 2007 through May 2008 on the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation, where Parisien Decoteau operated Angels Only Daycare. Parisien Decoteau submitted falsified documents to the Turtle Mountain Child Care Assistance Program to receive daycare payments she was not entitled to receive. Parisien Decoteau submitted documents where the children’s dates of birth and client expenses had been altered, including billing for dates and hours children were not at her daycare.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs - Turtle Mountain Agency and Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant United States Attorney Brandi Sasse Russell prosecuted the case.