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Pine Ridge, SD - An American Indian reservation visited by President Bill Clinton during a July "poverty tour" erupted in unrest Sunday as dissidents alleging financial malfeasance took over the tribal government complex.

More than 100 people were involved in the peaceful takeover of the Oglala Sioux Tribal headquarters on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, traditional leader Dale Looks Twice told 7amNews. He said that those involved in the takeover are asking for a federal audit of millions of dollars in tribal monies that"never reached the people."

Elected officials have been "cashing in on our people," Looks Twice declared. He pointed out that the Pine Ridge Reservation has more than 80 per cent unemployment and "for the last 20 years has been the poorest county" in the U.S.

FBI officials removed records and computers relating to programs administered by the tribal housing program, Looks Twice said. That investigation has been ongoing for months, he noted.

The occupation will continue until all issues are resolved, he said. Among them: demands for the the restoration of lands known as the Buffalo Gap grasslands and the removal of the tribal treasurer, as well as a review of the tribe's constitution and other documents.

Clinton visited the reservation in July as part of his anti-poverty initiative. At that time, he promoted an increase in HUD and Fannie Mae housing programs. Ironically, it is those programs that now are among those being investigated for possible improper financial dealings. Also under fire: the handling of a $7.8 million program for law enforcement, which, despite funding, on Friday laid off 60 tribal law enforcement workers.