Arizona beefs up program to prosecute gaming crimes

By Kathy Helms
Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — The Arizona Department of Gaming and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Arizona have added a federal prosecutor to more effectively prosecute casino crimes in Arizona Indian Country.

The two agencies signed a memorandum of understanding in 2005 to establish a joint program — the first of its kind in the nation — to combat crime at Indian gaming establishments.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Brnovich of the Phoenix office has been assigned to focus on the prosecution.
Brnovich served as an assistant attorney general for the state of Arizona representing the Department of Gaming for five years and while in that position was involved in negotiating the current gaming compacts. He also represented the Department of Gaming in court and administrative hearings.

The Arizona Department of Gaming — which provides funding for Brnovich’s position — and Arizona tribal leaders, representing the 19 members of the Arizona Indian Gaming Association, initiated the concept of the agencies working jointly to obtain criminal prosecutions of casino crimes.

The tribes and tribal gaming regulators told Arizona Department of Gaming that they wanted more criminal enforcement to protect tribal assets and the gaming public.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office is responsible for the prosecution of felonies on tribal land in Arizona, according to U.S. Attorney Daniel Knauss, while Arizona Department of Gaming funds the Assistant U.S. Attorney position for five years.

“We appreciate the assistance of the Arizona Department of Gaming and the Arizona Indian Gaming Association that will enable us to more effectively prosecute gaming crimes in Arizona Indian Country,” Knauss stated Wednesday in a press release.

Paul A. Bullis, director of the Arizona Department of Gaming, said the agreement sends a message to criminals that Arizona won’t tolerate casino crimes.

“The threat of federal criminal prosecution will deter unscrupulous individuals from attempting to defraud tribal casinos or the gaming public,” he said.

One example of potential casino crimes surfaced Wednesday when the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced that a federal grand jury in Phoenix has returned a one count indictment against two Phoenix men for fraudulently stealing $9,400 in jackpots that never occurred at Vee Quiva Casino in Laveen, Ariz.

Jason C. Beal, 31, and Fernando Lechuga, 25, were charged with one count each of theft by an officer or employee of a gaming establishment on Indian lands. The indictment alleges that on Nov. 24, 2006, two jackpot slips, for $4,900 and $4,500, were written and signed by Lechuga, a slot attendant, and Beal, a slot assistant supervisor.

Review of surveillance tapes confirm the jackpots never occurred and the slips were submitted in an attempt to steal money from the casino. Both men turned themselves in to the U.S. Marshals Service and are set for trial Jan. 8. If convicted, each face up to 20 years in prison, a $1 million fine, or both.

Pooling agreement
The Navajo Nation, which plans to make its foray into gaming first in New Mexico, is allowed four gaming facilities in Arizona. The Nation entered into short-term leases with the Tohono O’Odom and Gila River tribes in Arizona, leasing 475 gaming devices from its allocation of 2,400, and effectively losing one gaming facility.

The Nation now is considering entering into a “pooling agreement” with six Arizona tribes, rather than a lease agreement. By doing so, according to Eddie Lockett, director of the Navajo Nation Gaming Regulatory Department, the Nation has received assurance from the state that it will recapture the fourth facility.