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Feds seek 3 suspected Native Mob members from Minnesota's Bemidji, Cass Lake and White Earth

The public is being asked to help federal officials locate three men suspected of ties to the Native Mob.

The men, wanted as part of an indictment unsealed last week, are at large and should be considered armed and dangerous, according to the U.S. Marshals Service in Minnesota.

The indictment accuses 24 suspected Native Mob members of racketeering and other charges.

Wanted posters were issued today for 33-year-old Wakinyan Wakan McArthur of Bemidji, 24-year-old Christopher Lee Wuori of Cass Lake and 23-year-old Eric Lee Bower of White Earth.

Anyone with any information on their whereabouts is asked to call the U.S. Marshals Service tip line at (651) 848-1444.

Gang experts have said the Native Mob is violent, and has influence from the Twin Cities to reservations throughout Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Last Tuesday, six men made appearances on federal charges of conspiracy to participate in racketeering, including Cory Gene Oquist, 22, of Bemidji; Dale John Pindegayosh, 29, of Cass Lake; and Justen Lee Poitra, 26, of Cass Lake.

Oquist, known as “Guns,” and Poitra, known as “Justo,” also were charged with conspiracy to use and carry firearms during and in relation to a crime of violence and conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance.

Pindegayosh, known as “J.P.,” also was charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, and being a felon in possession of ammunition.

A statewide take-down coordinated efforts of more than 100 local, state, federal and tribal law enforcement agencies, according to the Department of Justice. Arrests were made on the White Earth, Mille Lacs and Leech Lake Indian reservations.

The Native Mob started in the 1990s in Minneapolis and its members routinely engage in drug trafficking, assault, robbery and murder, according to the Department of Justice. Membership is estimated at around 200.

The indictment alleges that since at least the mid-1990s, the defendants and others have conspired to conduct criminal activity through the Native Mob, in violation of the federal Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.

The indictment alleges that the primary objective of the mob is to preserve, protect, promote, and enhance the Native Mob’s power, territory, and financial gains by distributing illegal drugs, from crack cocaine to ecstasy.

They also reportedly provide monetary support to other members, including those incarcerated; share with one another police reports, victim statements, and other case discovery; hinder or obstruct officials from identifying or apprehending those wanted by the law; and intimidate witnesses, according to the Department of Justice. Moreover, they purportedly maintain and circulate firearms for gang use and commit acts of violence, including murder, against individuals associated with rival gangs.

The Paul Bunyan Drug Task Force; Headwaters Safe Trails Task Force; Bemidji Police Department; Beltrami, Cass, Crow Wing, Itasca and Mahnomen county sheriff ’s offices; Leech Lake Tribal Police Department, Red Lake Tribal Police Department and White Earth Tribal Police Department were among the many agencies that took part in the coordinated effort Tuesday.

 

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