Copyright © 1998 NLThomas
All Rights Reserved

Cherokee Press Association
Copyright © 1998 CPA
All Rights Reserved

Documents made public Thursday show Cherokee Chief Joe Byrd authorized a $2.4 million transfer from Indian Health Service funds to the tribe’s general fund Oct 1.

The tribe’s former comptroller warned Byrd in December such transfers are a “very serious matter.” Federal program funds are to be used for specific programs, not for the tribe’s general fund.

Byrd spokeswoman Lynn Adair said a bank statement reflects the transfer never occurred -- that motor fuels money was transferred to cover the cash flow problem on that day.

She said don Vaughan, a tribal accounting official, said the proposed $2.4 million transfer from federal IHS funds was just an option the tribe was “looking into but never implemented.”

Signatures of Byrd and Chief of Staff George Thomas appear on the IHS cash transfer request for “prepayment of operational costs.”

Other documents reflect a $733,784 transfer from IHS money labeled as interest income ended up in the tribe’s general fund on Oct. 14.

Tulsa attorney Chuck Shipley subpoenaed the documents from former tribal comptroller John Uzzo’s attorney in connection with a federal lawsuit. The suit pits three tribal councilors against a Washington, D.C., law firm the councilors claim over-charged the tribe.

A Dec. 23 letter from Uzzo warned Byrd about transfers to cover cash deficiencies that were “improperly labeled as pay backs” when the programs did not owe the money. “This is a very serious matter and this -- practice has been discontinued.”

Uzzo’s letter also said he strongly suspected that if federal agencies discovered the magnitude of the tribe’s accounting problems that all “draw-downs” would be suspended until the situation was remedied.

Byrd never acknowledged Uzzo’s letter, according to tribal councilor Harold DeMoss, chairman of the tribe’s executive and finance committee.

Byrd fired Uzzo last Friday, one day after Uzzo provided Byrd and an accounting work committee a document reflecting the tribe had spent and/or obligated $6.4 million more than its revenues. Uzzo refused on Saturday to quote the $6.4 million amount, saying only that the document showed the “Nation is in severe financial difficulty because of mismanagement.”

Secretary-Treasurer Jennie Battles allegedly ordered the document destroyed in the Jan. 29 meeting in Byrd’s conference room. Vaughan told the Phoenix that he, too, recommended it be destroyed because he believed the information was unreliable.

The tribe’s highest court Saturday ordered Byrd and Battles not to destroy any of the documents presented in the Jan. 29 meeting.

DeMoss said he sought the ruling for fear evidence of the tribe’s true financial condition might be destroyed.

Shipley contends the documents appear to reflect a “felonious diversion” of more than $3 million by Byrd from the IHS trust fund “established by the federal government and paid for by the federal taxpayer”

Byrd didn’t return calls to his office. Adair said tribal officials are doing some research and will say more later.

Uzzo’s attorney has said Uzzo didn’t voluntarily give up the documents, but obeyed a court order.

Shipley said he sent copies of the documents to U.S. Rep. Tom Colburn, R-Okla., urging him to investigate, and to the FBI

Shipley contends the FBI has been sitting “on this kind of stuff” for a year.

“I don’t know why the FBI isn’t being more aggressive,” he said. He speculated it might be because Byrd was the only Native American in President Clinton’s inaugural parade and because he loaned the Democratic Nation Committee a tribal employee at tribal expense.

“I don’t know -- but it frustrates me,” Shipley said.