Federal agents swarmed the offices of the North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians early Tuesday morning to serve a federal search warrant although authorities did not disclose why the warrant was issued or why tribal documentation was seized.
Special Agent Trey DeLaPena of the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of the Interior was overseeing the operation but said he couldn't give any details of the on-going investigation, only that a federal search warrant had been issued.
Office of the Inspector General Special Agent David Brown, who is in charge on the investigation, said there was really no information he could provide to the public.
The department of the interior is responsible for regulating American Indian concerns among other things such as preservation and conservation. The DOI's mission is to root out and prevent fraud, waste and mismanagement, according to their website. The site also stated that the DOI alerts to "waste, fraud, and mismanagement, whether expressed as administrative waste or criminal activity." Federal agents, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, searched not only tribal offices but also the tribal council building located down the road from the offices in North Fork.
According to North Fork residents, federal agents filled the parking lot of the tribal offices and were outside the tribal council office between 7:30 and 8 a.m. and later escorted employees out of the building.
An official statement was released by the Mono Indians' attorney John Maier late Tuesday afternoon.
"The North Fork Rancheria has offered its full cooperation in the investigation being conducted by the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of the Interior," Maier said. "The investigation apparently concerns the use and disclosure of the limited funds advanced to the tribe for its proposed casino project under its development agreement with Station Casinos. This information is routinely made available to tribal citizens in considerable detail, including general ledger records of each and every check drawn from the project and other unrestricted tribal funds. The tribe therefore does not understand the basis for the investigation, and is dismayed that information, which the tribe would have been more than willing to provide, is instead being secured with a search warrant."
Many North Fork residents were surprised upon seeing federal agents swarming tribal offices located in the middle of town.
"I've lived in this area for 36 years ... (and) it's unusual to have something like this," said Dr. John Scharffenberg.
News spread fast and North Fork resident Chuck Walling said he was surprised to hear about the investigation while at a church luncheon.
"I've lived up here since 1994," he said. "I hate to see things give our town a hard time -- it's a great place to live."
When Chawanakee Unified School District heard of the activity in town, which included an FBI helicopter circling overhead, Superintendent Steve Foster had the schools put on lock-down until they were assured everything was clear.
Other than schools being put on lock-down, Barbara Troup, who works in town and has been a North Fork resident for 11 years, said the unusual event didn't "affect her one way or the other."
"Nothing surprises me in this town anymore," Troup said.
North Fork Hardware owner Bob McKee was surprised to find two FBI agents outside his shop when he showed up for work Tuesday morning. He said he asked them if he could help but they said they were waiting to gain access to the tribal council office located near the hardware store.
"This is a lot of excitement for North Fork," McKee said. "You don't see 20 FBI guys in North Fork. We're worried about it because the rancheria has been nothing but good for this town. They have contributed to our economy so we're concerned what's going on."
In September, the federal government announced that the 305-acre parcel for the tribe's proposed $350 million casino received a favorable decision to have the site for the casino placed in trust, which would allow the project at Avenue 17 and Highway 99 four miles north of downtown Madera to move forward.
Plans for the casino include a 200-room hotel, 72,000 square-feet of gaming, 11,000 square-feet for bingo, pool, spa, three restaurants, three bars, a food court, banquet rooms and retail. The facility would have 4,500 parking spaces, 2,000 of them in a multi-level parking structure.