Former Kickapoo Tribe Employee Pleads Guilty to Embezzlement

OKLAHOMA CITY—Kyle Jay Gipp, 34, of Shawnee, Oklahoma, pled guilty today to embezzlement from the Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma while he worked as a tribal employee, announced Sanford C. Coats, United States Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma.

Gipp worked for the Kickapoo Tribe from July 2008 through January 2013. In 2009, Gipp started managing the tribe’s property and supply unit. As part of those duties, Gipp maintained and managed Kickapoo Tribe credit cards that tribal employees used to buy fuel for tribal vehicles. According to the Information filed in the case, the tribe had specific operating procedures in place for employees to use its credit cards to purchase gas for tribal vehicles. The information alleges that a particular credit card was used several times during 2012 without proper documentation or receipts.

At today’s plea hearing, Gipp pled guilty to one count of tribal embezzlement. Specifically, Gipp admitted that from January 2011 through the end of 2012, he used a Kickapoo Tribe credit card to buy more than $22,000 of gas for his personal vehicles. Gipp’s punishment for the offense could be as much as five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. In a plea agreement, Gipp agreed to pay restitution to the Kickapoo Tribe in the amount of $22,447.44. Sentencing is scheduled for June 18, 2014.

This charge is the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris M. Stephens.