Criminal charges have been filed against Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Chairman Cedric Cromwell. The Chairman is accused of accepting bribes related to the coustruction of a Tribal Casino in Taunton, Massachusetts.

Cromwell was arrested on November 13 on two counts of accepting or paying bribes. He also faces four counts of extortion, with a fifth count of conspiring to commit extortion.

“The charges allege that Mr. Cromwell violated the trust he owed the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe by committing extortion, accepting bribes and otherwise abusing his position,” said United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling. “Many American Indians face a host of difficult financial and social issues. They require – and deserve – real leadership. But it appears that Cromwell’s priority was not to serve his people, but to line his own pockets. We will continue to aggressively investigate public corruption, including by those who purport to serve our American Indian tribes.”

In the charges, its alleged that David Dequattro’s, owner of an architecture firm, lined Cromwell’s pockets with as much as $57,549 between 2014 and 2017. Dequattro’s company was paid nearly $5 million to work on the Taunton resort and casino the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe’s Gaming Authority was working on.