MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced today that CHARLES BLAIR SMALLWOOD, age 24, of Durant, Oklahoma, pled guilty to THEFT BY OFFICERS OR EMPLOYEES OF GAMING ESTABLISHMENT ON INDIAN LANDS, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2250(a)(1), 2250(a)(2)(B) and 2250(a)(3).
The charge arose from an investigation by the Choctaw Nation Tribal Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The defendant was indicted in March, 2016.
The Indictment alleged that from in or about December 2014, to on or about Aug. 17, 2015, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendant, while an employee of the Choctaw Nation Casino and Resort, in Indian Country, did embezzle, abstract, purloin, willfully misapply, and take and carry away with intent to steal any moneys, funds, assets, or other property in excess of $1,000.00 belonging to the Choctaw Nation Casino and Resort, an Indian gaming establishment operated by the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma pursuant to an ordinance or resolution approved by the National Indian Gaming Commission.
The Honorable Kimberly E. West, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, accepted the guilty plea and ordered the completion of a presentence report. Sentencing will be scheduled following its completion. The defendant will remain on bond pending sentencing.
The statutory range of punishment is not more than 20 years imprisonment, up to a $1,000,000 fine or both.
Assistant United States Attorney Kristin Harrington represented the United States.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
