The post Former Tribal Chair Who Allegedly Took $177k in Bribes for Casino Work Pleads Guilty in Tax Case appeared first on Vegas Slots Online News.

The former chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag Nation in Massachusetts has pleaded guilty to filing false tax returns between 2014 and 2017 by not reporting over $177,000 in income.

Cedric Cromwell allegedly set up a corporate entity with the supposed intent of getting funds for a planned casino project. Prosecutors alleged that he instead used this as a shell company to accept bribes from firms that wanted to work on the planned First Light Resort and Casino in Taunton.

This included $57,549 from an architecture company, $45,023 from another architect, and $74,281 from a firm or firms that would be creating and supplying forest carbon offsets.

original trial in 2022 resulted in a conviction for extortion and bribery

Cromwell had originally pleaded not guilty in the case. The original trial in 2022 resulted in a conviction for extortion and bribery, which came with a three-year prison sentence. He fought this conviction, ultimately failing to get the case heard in the Supreme Court. The 60-year-old initially said that the funds weren’t bribes, that they were campaign contributions or gifts.

Sentencing for Cromwell for the four counts of filing a false tax return will take place on November 5, with each charge carrying up to three years in prison.

The post Former Tribal Chair Who Allegedly Took $177k in Bribes for Casino Work Pleads Guilty in Tax Case appeared first on Vegas Slots Online News.