Coushatta Casino Resort is the focus of a financial misconduct and suspected firearms investigation by the Louisiana State Police.
The premises have previously been involved in a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and National Indian Gaming Commission case into Jonathan Cernek, the former chairman of the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana.
Now the gaming division of the Louisiana State Police has confirmed that Cernek and others are part of a wider ongoing financial misconduct case, and a shooting was reported at the home of the current Coushatta Tribe Chairman, David Sickey.
Louisiana State Police confirm Coushatta Tribe casino case
Lt. Robert Dowdy, with the Louisiana State Police Gaming Enforcement Division, was interviewed by the Louisiana Illuminator and replied to the case involving the Coushatta Casino Resort as “ongoing.”
In a dramatic addition to an already complicated case, a shot was fired at Sickey’s home, traveling through his child’s bedroom window. No injuries were reported in the 11:15 p.m. shooting, but a slug was recovered from the scene by the Jefferson Davis Parish Sheriff’s Office.
We reported the initial case involving the alleged actions of Cernek, but the other individuals under investigation by the FBI and the National Indian Gaming Commission had not been named.
According to documents obtained by the news outlet, the case has spanned months of investigation into Cernek and other individuals close to the resort’s financial mechanisms.
They include former employees, Paula Corliss, the venue’s purchasing manager, and Todd Stewart, who served as the general manager and chief financial officer.
More details in the casino case come to light
According to documents linked to the case, the Louisiana Legislative Auditor received submissions from Stewart as part of an independent audit that showed credit card misuse.
A request by the National Indian Gaming Commission ordered the Coushatta Tribe’s casino oversight panel to review both Stewart and Corliss’ licenses. Neither was renewed.
The National Indian Gaming Commission issued a letter to the panel regarding Stewart’s license and called for its revocation on multiple grounds.
The regulatory body stated that Stewart did not “disclose suspected fraud to the external auditors” and did not make a potential lender of $150 million for a construction project involving the casino aware of this either.
Featured image: Coushatta Casino Resort via YouTube
The post Louisiana State Police confirm misconduct case into the Coushatta Tribe casino appeared first on ReadWrite.