Sioux City Man Pleads Guilty in Federal Court to Stealing from Indian Tribal Organization

A Sioux City man who engaged in rebate schemes, fraudulent invoice schemes, and stole items belonging to the Winebago Tribe of Nebraska pled guilty today in federal court in Sioux City.

Jason Ehlers, age 48, from Sioux City, Iowa, was convicted of embezzlement and theft from an Indian Tribal Organization.

In a plea agreement, Ehlers admitted that he stole and embezzled from the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska at least $22,432.00.  Ehlers admitted to using his position as a General Manager with BluStone Homes, also known as HoChunk Real-Estate, solely owned by the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, to engage in rebate schemes, a fraudulent invoice scheme, and theft of construction supplies, for his own benefit. 

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Ehlers remains free on bond pending sentencing.  Ehlers faces a possible maximum sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and 3 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ron Timmons and was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-4089.

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