Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians
Outcome
Three former tribal leaders — including the tribe's economic development director (a former FBI agent), the tribal administrator, and the tribal treasurer — were convicted and sentenced to federal prison for stealing more than $4.9 million from the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians and ordered to pay over $5.2 million in criminal restitution; an additional $10 million civil settlement was also reached.
Details
Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians — Leadership Embezzlement ($4.9 Million) (2009–2014)
Outcome: Three former tribal leaders convicted of conspiracy to embezzle from a tribal organization and tax offenses; John Crosby sentenced to 57 months in prison with $2.7 million restitution, Ines Crosby sentenced to 57 months with $1.58 million restitution, and Leslie Lohse sentenced to 41 months with $902,000 restitution; an additional $10 million civil settlement was reached with John and Ines Crosby in 2022.
John A. Crosby, 56, of Redding, served as the Paskenta Band's economic development director and was a former FBI special agent in Sacramento. His mother, Ines S. Crosby, 76, of Orland, served as the tribe's administrator. His aunt, Leslie A. Lohse, 67, of Glenn, served as the tribe's treasurer. From approximately January 2009 through May 2014, the three family members used their positions of authority to take more than $4.9 million of tribal funds without tribal authorization or legal authority.
The funds were spent on personal real estate improvements including a $243,000 swimming pool and spa at John Crosby's home and an $84,000 koi pond for Ines Crosby; luxury vacations to Africa, South America, and Hawaii using private and chartered aircraft; high-value personal entertainment; vehicle purchases; and $150,000 in gold coins and other precious metals.
To conceal their conduct, the defendants created a written employment agreement in 2014 that was made to appear as if it had been drafted in 2001, purportedly authorizing their use of tribal funds. When confronted by federal investigators, all three defendants represented that the backdated document was a genuine 2001 document, knowing this to be false.
John and Ines Crosby were convicted at trial in February 2022. Lohse pled guilty. U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez sentenced all three on February 28, 2022. In addition to the criminal restitution, John Crosby and Ines Crosby each paid the tribe $5 million through a separate civil settlement reached in November 2022.
Primary Source: Former Members of Tribal Leadership Sentenced for Multimillion Dollar Embezzlement Scheme — DOJ Eastern District of California
How Crucible Prevents This
The Paskenta scheme succeeded in part because three family members held the tribe's top financial positions simultaneously and created a backdated employment agreement in 2014 to retroactively justify their conduct. Crucible's conflict-of-interest tracking, related-party transaction controls, and document authentication audit trails directly counter this pattern. Automated flagging of transactions approved by related parties, combined with immutable decision logs that would have exposed the fraudulent 2014 backdated document, are core Crucible enforcement capabilities applicable to tribal government financial governance.
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