Image provided by: Oregon Historical Society; Portland, OR
About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 8, 2009)
r “I News from Indian Country Pgge 9 Spilydy Tymoo October 8, 2009 Calif, authorities say 1981 triple murder was hit job LOS A N G ELES (AP) — California authorities believe an unsolved 1981 triple m urder at the Cabazon Band o f Mission Indians was a hit job orches trated by a tribal casino director, finan cial adviser and others to cover up ille gal activity, and state officials are seek ing to have the main suspect extradited to California. James “Jimmy” Hughes, the founder o f a Miami-based Christian ministry, was arrested last m onth at Miami In ternational A irport on a fugitive war ran t and was being held in Miami, where he is fighting extradition to Cali fornia. Hughes, 52, faces three counts o f murder in the execution-style shootings o f C ab azo n trib a l o fficia l A lfred Alvarez and his friends Patricia Castro and R alph Boger and one cou n t o f conspiracy to com m it a crime, accord ing to a felony complaint for extradi tion filed Thursday. I t w a s n 't im m e d ia te ly c lea r if H ughes had retained an attorney. His ministry spokeswoman and his wife did n o t reply to e-mails sent late Thursday. T he complaint alleges that Hughes conspired with non-Indian tribal finan cial consultant Jo h n Philip Nichols, Nichols' son Jo h n Paul Nichols, and others in the days immediately before the murders to “prevent Fred Alvarez from exposing illegal activities o f John P h ilip N ic h o ls , o c c u rrin g a t th e Cabazon Indian Reservation.” T h e reserv atio n is lo cated near Indio, in a ru ral area o f Riverside County about 130 miles southeast o f Los Angeles. A message left at the tribal administration offices was n ot im me diately returned. T he elder Nichols died in 2001 af ter pleading no contest to two counts o f m urder solicitation and serving 18 m onths in prison in another murder- for-hire plot. A t the time, investigators said they couldn't tie him to the un solved 1981 slayings. • The-arrest w arrant for Hughes was issued in A u gust by th e R iverside County Sheriffs D epartm ent after a joint investigation with the state attor ney general's office, said Evan Westrup, a spokesman for the state attorney gen eral. The state is taking the lead in pros ecuting th e case because Riverside The bizarre killings were dubbed the “octopus murders” by detectives because o f the complexity and mystery surrounding them. County District Attorney Rod Pacheco is a distant cousin o f Hughes. W estru p d e c lin e d to say w h a t prom pted authorities to issue the war rant 28 years after the crime. State officials are seeking to have Hughes extradited to California by a special governor's warrant, a process th a t cou ld take a m o n th o r m ore, Westrup said. Westrup said the investi gation is ongoing and added that an affidavit in support o f Hughes' arrest warrant was sealed by a judge in Au gust. The bizarre killings were dubbed the “octopus m urders” by detectives be cause o f the complexity and mystery Skokomish Lucky Dog Casino closing SHELTON, Wash. (AP) - The gen eral manager o f the Skokomish Tribe's Lucky D og Casino north o f Shelton says it will close for the w inter due to the recession. N ick Phillips said Wednesday was the casino's last day. It planned to lay o ff 120 employees, including 80 full time workers. H e says about 10 p ercent o f the staff was American Indian; many work ers co m m u ted from cities such as Olympia and Belfair. T he Olympian reports the casino will honor its remaining financial obli gations by redeeming valid slot tickets and outstanding gaming chips through Oct. 30; Phillips says casino workers person ally knew customers w ho have lost jobs as well as senior citizens w ho have be come m ore careful with discretionary income. H e says no date has been set for the casino to reopen. In 2006, the Lucky D og underwent a $4 million expansion. Hopi, Navajo say environmentalists not welcome on their reservations FLAG STAFF, Ariz. (AP) - T he leader o f the country's largest Indian reservation is throw ing his su p p o rt behind the neighboring H op i Tribe, w hose lawmakers declared environ mental groups unwelcome on the res ervation. Navajo President Joe Shirley Jr. and H opi lawmakers say environmentalists' efforts could h u rt the tribes' struggling economies by slowing or stopping coal mining. Shirley said Wednesday he will stand in solidarity with the H opi Tribe. H e also joined H opi lawmakers in encouraging other tribes to re-evaluate their relationships with envirdhmental- ists. Andy Bessler o f the Sierra Club says the group réspects tribal sovereignty and understands the need for tribes to develop their economies. B ut unless tribes can prevent carbon dioxide òr air pollution from leaving the reservation, he said environmental groups will con tinue to address the issues that extend beyond tribal boundaries. surrounding them. For years, numerous local and state investigations turned up no suspects, despite ram pant rumors, pressure from the victims' families, and the apparent suicide in 1991 o f a freelance reporter who was probing the matter. Alvarez was vice chairman o f the Cabazon Tribal Council and security c h ie f o f th e trib e 's p o k er casino. H ughes was security director o f the tribe's casino and bingo operations for four years, until 1984. T he elder Nichols was an outside financial guru hired by the 24-member tribe in 1978 and was considered a pio neer in Indian gaming. In a 1985 article about the elder Nichols' arrest in the murder-for-hire plot, the Los Angeles Times reported that Alvarez told the Indio Daily News shordy before his murder that he feared fo r his life. T h e article also said Alvarez's sister said her brother be lieved the non-Indians running the ca sino were skimming gambling profits. Alvarez's sister, Linda Alvarez, told the AP on Thursday that her brother was afraid for his life because his mail box had been shot o ut and his m otor cycle had many unexplained break downs and missing parts. “You w ouldn't think he'd be afraid o f anybody because he (was) a big guy, but he was concerned,’’.she said. In 1984, Hughes, then 27, told au thorities he had been a payoff m an in the Alvarez case. H e said in the sum m er o f 1981, he had been instructed in the presence o f the elder Nichols to take $25,000 to the m ountain community o f Idyllwild and give it to a m an as a partial payment for the Alvarez killings, according to the 1985 Times article. Hughes left California after renewed investigations turned up nothing. H e resurfaced in 1995, w hen he founded the Jimmy Hughes Ministries, w hich provides services in C entral America to battered women, drug ad dicts and others, according to its Web site. Calls to listings fo r the younger Nichols in N ew York City and at an Indio golf course on Cabazon p ro p erty rang unanswered. 3 new highway markers to commemorate Va. Indians R IC H M O N D , Va., (AP) - The D epartm ent o f Historic Resources has approved three new highway markers commemorating the history o f Virginia Indians. O ne sign will be installed along the Chickahom iny River betw een N ew K ent and Charles City coun ties. It recounts the destruction o f Chickahominy Indian towns by E n glish colonists in 1645. A nother marker to be installed in Williamsburg notes the imprison m ent o f about 40 Nazattico Indi ans in 1704. T he third marker will be installed in King and Q ueen County. It re calls the 1676 insurrection led by colonist N athaniel Bacon, whose sympathizers drove Pamunkey In dians from their main tow n on the Pamunkey River. Standing Rock Sioux to appeal grant denial FO R T YATES, N.D. (AP) - O ffi cials o f the Standing Rock Sioux tribe say they are appealing the denial o f a $1.5 million suicide prevention grant that would help keep five workers on the job in communities along the N orth D akota-South D akota border. T he g rant from the federal Sub stance Abuse and Mental H ealth Ser vices A d m in istration had been ap proved for the tribe for the past three years. Standing Rock Chairman Ron His H orse Is T hunder said the tribe's ap plication this year was n o t ranked high enough to continue the money. H e says he will challenge the decision. His H orse Is T hunder said at least 20 clients have been served w ith the grant through transportation programs that get them to'counseling or other medical help. T he m oney also helps grieving families o f suicide victims. Officials o f the grant program said they could n o t com m ent on specific requests. Native corporations defend contracts LETTERMRN’S jackets lo u B w n e a it. L to u nesevwe W Basic Coat: $185 Includes name, year patch, one celor sleeve ts k u a m n Customizing Your lacfcetl Perfect Christmas Present? Order must be in by 10/30/09 to guarantee delivery by Christmas. Buff Boosters MHS Football SWEATSHIRTS T’s ■ HATS Printed & Embroidered Apparel Call or stop by 43 NW Cherry Lane, #105 • Madras • 475-8700^ A N C H O R A G E, Alaska (AP) - Five Alaska N ative corporations have launched a public relations cam paign to fight congressional attacks on governm ent contracting. The Anchorage Daily News says the corporations organized after Sen. Claire McCaskill o f Missouri raised co n cern s .a b o u t possible waste, fraud and abuse in the Small Business Administration's program for minority-owned, socially disad vantaged companies. W ith o u t com petitive bidding, N ative com panies landed nearly $24 billion in w ork over the past eight years. Contracts include cater ing services and security guards at military bases and database m an agement for large federal agencies. T h e N ative co rp o ratio n s say their revenue grow th is a sign that the program is working. The PR campaign was started by A fognak N ative Corp., C henega C o rp ., C h u g ach A laska C o rp ., Koniag Inc. and N A N A Regional Corp. T he coalition lists about 40 m em bers, including many Native corporation or tribal-owned com panies th at specialize in govern m ent contracting. T h e cam paign is p u b lish in g video clips on the In te rn e t and sending Alaska Native executives to public events around the state. The coalition contends success in contracting has allowed com pa nies to boost their shareholder divi dends, create new scholarships and provide jobs for thousands o f Alas kans. T he contracting privileges were inserted by form er Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, and they are also available to qualified Lower 48 tribes and Native Hawaiian companies, but n o t any other minority groups. Fifteen Native corporations em ploy 12,000 Alaskans and another 40,000 p eo p le w orldw ide, said Clyde G ooden, a form er N A N A subsidiary executive, w ho spoke at Monday's Anchorage Cham ber o f Comm erce luncheon. T he coalition has hired MSI C om m unications, an A nchorage public relations firm , to run the “Native 8(a) Works” campaign. McCaskill is still working on the Native contracting issue. “Reform in this area is going to happen. It's n o t a m atter o f if, but a m atter o f when,” press secretary Maria Speiser said.
