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Former Tribal Treasurer and Councilmember Sentenced for Embezzlement Scheme
Sioux Falls, SD – Roland Robert Hawk, Sr., 51, a former elected treasurer of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe, has been sentenced to 42 months in federal prison for his role in an embezzlement scheme involving tribal funds.
Hawk was also ordered to pay $325,762.50 in restitution and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Following his release from custody, Hawk will serve 3 years of supervised release. Hawk was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
According to court documents, Hawk, along with former councilmember Francine Maria Middletent, 55, and former employee Jacqueline Ernestine Pease, 34, embezzled approximately $1,000,000 of monies, funds, credit, goods, assets, and other property belonging to the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe between March 2014 and February 2019.
The investigation into the embezzlement scheme was conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy R. Jehangiri is prosecuting the case.
U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons announced the sentencing, stating, “Crow Creek citizens need to know that their government works and that theft and embezzlement will not be tolerated. This case should go a long way toward restoring that confidence.”
Councilmember Middletent was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison, ordered to pay $273,817.55 in restitution, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. She will serve 3 years of supervised release following her release from custody. Middletent was released on bond and ordered to report to the federal prison designed by the Bureau of Prisons at a later date.
Pease, who worked in the Tribe’s Finance Office, was sentenced to 3 years of probation, ordered to pay $74,100 in restitution, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Chief U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange presided over each of the sentencing hearings, calling the embezzlement scheme “terrible” and “despicable,” stating that the crimes involved a high level of “intentionality.”
Key Facts
- State: South Dakota
- Category: Public Corruption|White Collar Crime|Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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