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Plain Green Officials Get Prison Time
GREAT FALLS – Two former high-ranking officials of Plain Green, the Chippewa Cree Tribe’s online lending business, have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for their roles in a bribery and embezzlement scheme.
Neal Paul Rosette, 54, of Box Elder, who served as Plain Green’s CEO from its inception until January 2012, was sentenced to 38 months in prison and ordered to pay $1,488,472 in restitution. His colleague, Billi Anne Morsette, received a 41-month prison sentence and was ordered to pay $1,421,045 in restitution.
The two pleaded guilty in December to accepting bribes from Encores Services, a Las Vegas business, in exchange for facilitating the award and payment of fraudulent tribal contracts. They also pleaded guilty to helping Chippewa Cree Tribal Vice-Chairman John Chance Houle siphon off over $55,000 in tribal funds, which were laundered through Plain Green and then diverted to the Chippewa Cree Rodeo Association accounts.
According to court records, the Chippewa Cree Tribe created First American Capital Resources, LLC (FACR) in May 2010 to partner with outside interests to provide a payday, online lending platform that would utilize tribal sovereignty to shield the business from state usury and predatory lending laws.
The FACR CEO was Neal Rosette, the FACR COO was Billi Anne Morsette, and the Chairman of the oversight board created by the tribal council to administer the internet lending program was tribal Vice-Chairman, John Chance Houle. Houle authorized and signed a $27,949.33 check to FACR from the Chippewa Cree Tribe Tribal Grants and Contracts account in September 2010, which was then used to make payments to Rosette and Morsette.
The scheme also involved a kick-back scheme between FACR and Encore Services Corporation, which provided subsidies for the salaries of Rosette and Morsette. In December 2010, James Eastlick, Jr. loaned $60,000 to cover their salaries, with the note on the loan between Eastlick and Encore.
The two officials were also accused of helping Houle siphon off over $55,000 in tribal funds, which were laundered through Plain Green and then diverted to the Chippewa Cree Rodeo Association accounts. Rosette pleaded guilty to income tax evasion, while Morsette pleaded guilty to willful failure to file tax returns.
Key Facts
- State: Montana
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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