Nomlaki
Indian Tribe

The Joseph Saveri Law Firm, LLC was Co-Lead Counsel in a lawsuit filed in March 2015 in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California on behalf of the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians (Paskenta) against former tribal officials.

The suit, Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians v. Crosby, brought civil RICO and various California state law claims to seek monetary compensation for the tribe.

The suit alleges that certain former tribal officials and others formed and operated a RICO enterprise to loot tens of millions of dollars in tribal moneys that were ultimately used for their own personal benefit.

Specifically, Paskenta alleged that former tribal officials spent the tribe’s funds on luxury homes, expensive cars, private jet travel, exclusive entertainment, vacations, and other personal expenses. Several of the former tribal officials were federally indicted on claims that closely tracked the tribe’s claims in this civil action.

On September 27, 2021, the Court allowed Paskenta to seize California properties of its former economic development director, John Crosby. Crosby, his mother, and his aunt pled guilty in 2019 to criminal fraud, tax fraud, and evasion charges for their participation in a scheme that defrauded the tribe of millions of dollars. As part of his plea agreement, Crosby agreed to pay at least $2.7 million in restitution to the tribe and $894,651 to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Ines Crosby paid $1.58 million to the tribe and $547,745 to the IRS, and Leslie Lohse agreed to pay $684,923 to the tribe and $217,085 to the IRS.

On November 16, 2022, John Crosby and Ines Crosby were ordered by the Court to pay $5 million each to Paskenta. The case was dismissed on January 12, 2023.

On February 25, 2022, in a related criminal suit (U.S.A v. Crosby, No. 17-cr-00006-JAM (E.D. Cal.)), the Court sentenced John Crosby, Ines Crosby, and Leslie Lohse for their role in what the judge described as a more than decade-long scheme to embezzle millions of dollars from Paskenta. John Crosby and Ines Crosby were each sentenced to four years and nine months, and Leslie Lohse was sentenced to three years and five months. Lohse was ordered to pay restitution of  $217,085 to the IRS. The Court described defendants, in particular Lohse, as “vindictive” in her treatment of tribe members, punishing tribe members for raising concerns about the defendants’ use of tribal money that later turned out to be completely true. The Court also rejected efforts by the defendants to cast themselves as the “victims” of the tribe, noting that the tribe had every right to pursue the defendants for the money they stole.

On April 19, 2022, the Court in the criminal suit ordered John Crosby to pay restitution of $894,651 to the IRS and $2,705,643.08 to Paskenta, and ordered Ines Crosby to pay restitution of $547,745 to the IRS and $1,581,015.58 to Paskenta. The criminal case is now closed.