Former Oglala Sioux Tribe President Julian Bear Runner was convicted of six counts of wire fraud, one count of larceny, and one count of embezzlement and sentenced to 22 months in federal prison for fraudulently submitting travel vouchers and stealing more than $80,000 from the tribe.

Oglala Sioux Tribe — President Embezzlement via Travel Fraud (2019–2020)

Outcome: Julian Bear Runner, former President of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, was convicted on eight felony counts and sentenced to 22 months in federal prison, with $82,483.71 in restitution ordered, for submitting fraudulent travel vouchers and stealing tribal funds while serving as the tribe's elected leader.

Julian Bear Runner, 38, of Pine Ridge, South Dakota, served as President of the Oglala Sioux Tribe from January 2018. Between January 2019 and January 2020, while acting in his official capacity as Tribal President, Bear Runner fraudulently submitted travel vouchers for official business travel and received payment for travel he was not actually conducting — claiming reimbursement for trips he did not take.

Bear Runner was indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2022. After a trial, a jury returned a guilty verdict on April 4, 2024, on six counts of wire fraud, one count of larceny, and one count of embezzlement and theft from an Indian tribal organization. He stole more than $82,000 in tribal funds through the travel fraud scheme.

U.S. District Judge sentenced Bear Runner to 22 months on each count, to be served concurrently. He was ordered to pay $82,483.71 in restitution to the Oglala Sioux Tribe. The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of South Dakota in coordination with SSA OIG and HHS OIG.

Primary Source: Former Oglala Sioux Tribe President Sentenced to Federal Prison