Casino developers Nevada Gold tried to tempt Timbisha Shoshone tribal council members with strippers and money, according to the written statement of an ex-employee of the tribe, which is being offered in evidence in a $50 million suit by the Rinaldo Corporation.

The Rinaldo suit alleges "the defendants conspired to interfere with Rinaldo's existing contract with the Timbisha Shoshone Tribe of California to develop a casino and 300-room resort property on tribal trust lands in Hesperia," according to a statement released by the company earlier this month.

Jeremiah Gulick worked as an executive assistant and economic development assistant for the tribe's office in Bishop from May 17 to Oct. 26 of this year. In a statement prepared for the Rinaldo Corporation suit against Nevada Gold, Sierra Research and Consulting, Sheila Torkelson and Michael Derry, Gulick alleges a plan to "ram through approval of a final agreement with Nevada Gold, including a provision waiving the Tribe's sovereign immunity." The document was posted to the Timbisha.com unofficial tribal Web site download section.

According to Gulick, during most of the time he was employed by the tribe, he commuted with Torkelson, the tribal administrator, to and from Ridgecrest, 120 miles away from the tribe's offices in Bishop, each day.

"During these long commutes, I had occasion to discuss many personal and business matters with Torkelson and overheard many phone conversations that Torkelson conducted," the declaration reads in part.

Gulick's declaration alleges Torkelson felt bitterness towards the Rinaldo because she would not be getting a 2 percent profit participation in the corporation she wanted.

"Then she stated that Rinaldo's poor treatment of her was 'nothing to worry about because Nevada Gold was going to end up building the casino anyway,'" Gulick said, in part, of his first day at work.

Gulick then alleges he attended a breakfast meeting with the tribal council and Nevada Gold CEO Tom Winn in June. At the meeting, according to Gulick, Winn said the management agreement the company wanted to enter into with the tribe was just a precursor to a development agreement that would be entered into "as soon as the Tribe broke its existing Development Agreement with Rinaldo."

He also asserts that Nevada Gold was putting its money behind making that happen: "At the breakfast, Torkelson and/or [tribal consultant] Derry referred to $25,000 that Nevada Gold has already advanced to the Tribe to hire lawyers for the express purpose of breaking the Development Agreement between the Tribe and Rinaldo. Tom Winn said that Nevada Gold could not directly fund litigation to break the contract because that would be 'tortious interference and against the law.' [Nevada Gold Vice-President] Don Brennan then said that Nevada Gold would have to fund litigation through the Tribe."

Gulick said he later called council member Erick Mason to ask why he had not been at the meeting.

"Mason responded that he didn't attend the breakfast meeting because he had seen Nevada Gold's presentation already. Mason related that, in March or April of 2004," he and other council members, along with Derry and Torkelson, were in Connecticut to meet with the Mohegan Sun tribe to discuss them developing the casino. After the meeting, according to Gulick, Nevada Gold had sent a car for the tribal officials and brought them to New York City. The New York City tribe allegedly included a visit to the New York Stock Exchange, dinner and a private room at the Scores strip club where Brennan "hired strippers to entertain them for the evening."

"In Mid June 2004, Torkelson, working with Derry, and the three members of the Tribal Council [that had split with Tribal Chairwoman Shirley Summers] cut off communications with Rinaldo," Gulick's statement reads. "Torkelson told me that I would be fired if I spoke to anyone representing Rinaldo."

"On or about July 30, Derry and Torkelson presented a proposed budget to Nevada Gold whereby Nevada Gold would fund the Torkelson Faction, pay Derry's and Torkelson's fees, and fund litigation against Rinaldo," the document continues. "On this basis, Torkelson and Derry caused [tribal council members Erick Mason, Doreen Mason, Mark Lee and Dan Shoshone] to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with Nevada Gold dated July 31, 2004."

Gulick claims Torkelson became suspicious of him following the filing of Rinaldo's lawsuit in October, believing he had given the company information the suit was based upon. Gulick claims both workplace harassment and anonymous telephone calls to the California Highway Patrol followed, leading to his resignation.

The Rinaldo suit is tentatively scheduled to be heard on Jan. 6 in Kern County Superior Court.

The proposed Timbisha Shoshone casino would be located south of Main Street and west of Interstate 15. In October, a San Bernardino County Superior Court judge halted progress on the casino proposal, which had been making its way through state and federal regulatory processes. Judge David Cohn ruled the City of Hesperia had failed to comply with state law when it approved an agreement between the city and tribe to provide city services to the casino without completing an environmental review in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act. If the decision is upheld on appeal the city would have to draw up a new Municipal Services Agreement, something which a majority of the new city council has indicated they would vote against. The appeal is expected to be heard late in 2005.

Beau Yarbrough can be reached at beau@hesperiastar.com or 956-7108.