SAN BERNARDINO - The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians has been named in a lawsuit linking the tribe to a 2006 murder-for-hire plot hatched inside a private casino VIP lounge.

Previously, tribal members Stacy Cheyenne Barajas-Nunez, 26, and her brother, Erik Barajas, 36, were named in the suit filed last year linking the siblings to the Mexican Mafia gang.

Attorney Frank Peterson, representing plot target Leonard Epps, claims in a Jan. 6 filing that the tribe is liable because it gave gang members special access to a private casino lounge.

"I'm saying, 'Hey, you were negligent,' " Peterson said Wednesday. "You let them in."

Tribe spokesman Jacob Coin did not return calls seeking comment.

The proposed amendment to the $50 million lawsuit filed last year contains tentative language that could link the tribe to the murder plot.

"That will be a jury question," Peterson said.

Peterson said the language naming the tribe is expected to be included in amended filings.

Former tribal chief Henry Duro and casino manager Ron Mastandrea also are named. They could not be reached to comment.

Peterson alleges the tribe was negligent, engaged in a civil conspiracy and inflicted emotional distress on Epps by allowing the casino meeting on June 22, 2006.

The lawsuit alleges that a high school yearbook photo of Epps was passed around inside the VIP lounge so gang members could confirm his identity.

A document from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, included in court records, says undercover law enforcement officers observed Barajas-Nunez and her "entourage" bypassing a waiting line when they entered a casino nightclub about 11:30 that night.

An undercover officer saw her entering the private VIP room about 15 minutes later, the document states.

Epps became the murder target in early 2006 after a confrontation with Barajas-Nunez while he was the manager at The Brass Key, a Highland bar.

That confrontation was over someone accusing her brother, Erik Barajas, of being a snitch.

Authorities who were investigating the Inland drug trade learned via wiretaps that the Barajas siblings were associated with Salvador Orozco Hernandez -- the Mexican Mafia kingpin of the Inland drug trade.

Hernandez, wanting to protect his cash flow from the Barajas siblings, gave the orders to target Epps, according to Hernandez's sentencing report.

The Barajas siblings and Hernandez pleaded guilty last year for their roles in the murder-for-hire plot. They also admitted criminal gang membership.

The Barajas siblings later were sentenced to a year of home electronic monitoring. Hernandez was sent to prison for a decade.

Epps has been on the run since San Bernardino police quietly spirited him into hiding in 2006.

Peterson said the VIP room is used for special tribal meetings and requires permission for use.

Reach John F. Berry at 951-368-9514 or jberry@PE.com