John A. Crosby, $6M Embezzlement, California 2024

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — John A. Crosby, 53, of Redding, once a top official of the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians, now stands accused of masterminding a $6 million theft from his own tribe. A federal grand jury returned a 69-count indictment today charging Crosby, his mother Ines S. Crosby, 73, of Orland, and Leslie A. Lohse, 62, of Glenn County, with conspiracy, embezzlement, falsifying federal records, and tax fraud. The case exposes a brazen betrayal of trust at the heart of tribal governance.

For over five years — from January 2009 to May 2014 — the defendants exploited their positions to siphon off tribal money generated by the Rolling Hills Casino in Tehama County. As officers and employees with authorized access, they treated tribal funds like a personal piggy bank, using the cash for private expenses while obscuring the theft. They allegedly created a fake $5 million line-of-credit document and remotely wiped tribal computer systems to destroy incriminating evidence.

In June 2015, as federal agents closed in, all three defendants lied under oath, claiming they had secured a $5 million credit line from the tribe — a story fabricated to justify the missing millions. John Crosby and Leslie Lohse went further, filing false tax returns that excluded the stolen funds. Ines Crosby didn’t file at all, vanishing into silence as the trail of fraud deepened.

IRS-Criminal Investigation and the FBI led the probe, uncovering a paper trail that exposed the scale of the deception. The indictment estimates the total embezzled amount at no less than $6 million — money meant for tribal programs, infrastructure, and community welfare. Instead, it vanished into personal accounts and undisclosed expenditures, gutting the financial integrity of the Paskenta Band.

Each defendant now faces severe penalties. On the charge of falsifying evidence in a federal investigation, they could get up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Each count of conspiracy, embezzlement, and making false statements carries a maximum of five years and a $250,000 fine. Filing a false tax return could add three years and a $25,000 fine; failing to file, one year and $25,000. Sentencing, if convicted, will follow federal guidelines and judicial discretion.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Todd A. Pickles and Matthew M. Yelovich are prosecuting the case. The defendants remain presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. But the indictment paints a damning picture: a family and colleague alliance that looted a sovereign nation from within, betraying both law and community.