Three plead guilty to defrauding Native American tribe, investors

Gary Hirst, already sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison for fraud in another case, has pled guilty to four fraud-related counts in connection with a scheme to defraud a Native American tribal entity and several investment advisory clients.

On the four counts, he faces maximum sentences of 35 years and $2.75 million in fines. Also pleading guilty in connection with the tribal fraud were his co-conspirators Jason Galanis and Hugh Dunkerley.

In total, Mr. Galanis pled guilty to three counts of fraud and faces up to 30 years in prison and fines of up to $5.5 million. On Aug. 11, 2017, he was sentenced to a term of 173 months in prison.

Mr. Dunkerley pled guilty to three counts of fraud and one count of falsification of records with the intent to obstruct a government investigation. He faces up to 50 years in prison and up to $10.5 million in fines.

Sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.

The U.S. Attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York said that from March 2014 through April 2016 Mr. Hirst and his co-conspirators engaged in a fraudulent scheme to misappropriate the proceeds of bonds issued by the Wakpamni Lake Community Corporation (WLCC) and to use funds in the accounts of clients of asset management firms controlled by Mr. Hirst and others to purchase the bonds, which the clients were then unable to redeem or sell because the bonds were illiquid and lacked a ready secondary market.