Former Officer and Wife Sentenced for Embezzlement and Theft from an Indian Tribal Organization

GRAND FORKS, ND—United States Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on October 26, 2011, Carl and Barbara Walking Eagle of Fort Totten, North Dakota, were sentenced before United States District Court Judge Ralph R. Erickson on charges of embezzlement and theft from an Indian Tribal Organization.

Judge Erickson sentenced Carl Walking Eagle to 120 days of home detention to be followed by three years of supervised release. Carl Walking Eagle was ordered to pay restitution to the Spirit Lake Tribe in the amount of $8,385.20, joint and several with co-defendant Barbara Walking Eagle. He was also ordered to pay a $1,000 fine, a $100 special assessment to the Crime Victim’s Fund, and to write a letter of apology to the Spirit Lake Tribe. Carl Walking Eagle served on the Spirit Lake Tribal Council since 1981 and was the vice-chairman of the tribe at the time of the criminal conduct.

Judge Erickson sentenced Barbara Walking Eagle to two years of supervised release, restitution to the Spirit Lake Tribe in the amount of $8,385.20, joint and several with co-defendant Carl Walking Eagle, and to pay a $200 special assessment to the Crime Victim’s Fund.

On August 8, 2011, Carl Walking Eagle, 69, pleaded guilty to the charges of embezzlement and theft from an Indian tribal organization. Barbara Walking Eagle, 65, a former librarian at the community college in Fort Totten, ND, pleaded guilty to charges of embezzlement and theft from an Indian tribal organization and false statements. The Walking Eagles admitted to giving false information to the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, on the Spirit Lake Indian Reservation, in order to receive fuel assistance by failing to disclose their actual household income.

U.S. Attorney Timothy Purdon stated, “Violations of public trust are taken very seriously by the United States Attorney’s Office. This case serves to demonstrate there are no exceptions to the requirement of honest services in public office.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Janice M. Morley prosecuted the case.