Barstow Beware: Under Shane Chapparosa's Leadership, Los Coyotes' Approach to Dispute Resolution?

REGION: Military training firm sues Los Coyotes tribe over lease

10.09.2011

By EDWARD SIFUENTES

esifuentes@nctimes.com

A bitter dispute between the Los Coyotes Band of Mission Indians in Warner Springs and a company that operates a military training facility on the North County reservation has spilled into court.

The Eagle Rock Training Center, which leased land on the reservation for the training facility that also serves as a set for Hollywood film crews, filed a lawsuit Sept. 15 after the tribe attempted to evict the business, according to documents filed in federal court.

The training center operators claim the tribe is trying to renege on their 25-year lease agreement.

Officials with the training center also allege that the dispute contributed to a hostile environment that led to the burning of a guard shack on July 21. The fire burned about 22 square miles of wildland before firefighters were able to stop it. [Eagle Fire]

Two tribal members, Jeremy Ortiz, 23, and Jesse Durbin, 23, were charged in August with setting the fire. Both men pleaded not guilty.

After the tribe gave the training center an eviction notice June 16, Eagle Rock officials said in court documents that they attempted to negotiate with the tribe to clarify the lease agreement. But tribal officials "failed to negotiate in good faith," according to the lawsuit.

"Members of Los Coyotes even threatened to take matters into their own hands if ERTC did not vacate the property -- tragically, such threats came to fruition when the tribe allowed certain tribal members to take matters into their own hands by pouring gasoline on ERTC's security booth and lighting it on fire, and destroying new surveillance cameras that were installed after the fire," according to court documents... (Complete Story)

For nearly a decade, Detroit casino syndicators (Michael Malik & Marian Ilitch) have been using the Los Coyotes tribe, and others, to front an opportunity that could allow the Detroiters to build and manage a $160 million casino in Barstow (CA).  In part, approvals for such a venture hinge on the ability of the tribe to prove the Los Coyotes Reservation in Warner Springs (CA) is unsuitable for business purposes.

When the Detroiters woke up to realize Francine Kupsch had signed the deal with Eagle Rock which agreed to pay the tribe 10 percent of its profits, plus build a new tribal hall and a children's playground, among other things, they could not have been too happy. After all, they claim to have spent millions already attempting to protect their exclusive rights to a Barstow casino franchise.

According to court documents, Eagle Rock had spent about $450,000 paying Los Coyotes rent payments and improvements to the children's park and training facilities, according to court documents. Adding value to the deal between Los Coyotes and Eagle Rock was the fact that  ERTC was also being used as a set for Hollywood film crews.

The last time these tribal leaders had a major dispute and were attempting to evict people from their Reservation (2000), they took up firearms and the San Diego County Sheriff had to get involved. (Indians aim to drive family from tribe in vicious dispute; San Diego Union-Tribune; April 9, 2000)

And did we mention that once again, Detroit was named the #1 Most Dangerous City in America?

You might also want to see: Los Coyotes tribal leader calls Barwest's Mike Malik "devil;" says he has "seduced" younger tribal leaders.

Another Detroit Sanctioned Los Coyotes Leadership Coup; plus Lawsuits, Arson, Blackwater and "Bonfiglio?"

The Eagle Fire started when a Los Coyotes member torched an
Eagle Rock guard shack. - Photo courtesy of Cal Fire San Diego

Clearly the Detroiters using the Los Coyotes Tribe as a tool to achieve their dreams of developing and running  a casino in Barstow (CA) are catalysts, if not wholly responsible for, this upheaval  (updated in the excerpts below from SDCityBeat.com) at the Los Coyotes Reservation.

As you read this, consider that the character mentioned in the article as Shane Chapparosa is a tool of the Detroit casino interests.  Whenever they fear trouble, they trot him out, prop him up – and reward him – to act as the new Chair of the tribe.  At least twice before the Detroiters have had to “arrange” for his leadership of the tribe when the then-true-leader attempts to take the tribe in a direction that might not be in the Detroiters’ best interest.

SDCityBeat.com

But since June, Los Coyotes—a tribe of about 300 members—has been trying to boot the company off its land, claiming the lease was never valid. The conflict has since escalated to a series of showdowns, which ERTC alleges led to the arson [allegedly STARTED BY TWO TRIBAL MEMBERS] that caused the 14,000-acre Eagle fire in July...

An eviction deadline was extended until July 29 as the parties continued to negotiate. The tribe asked to review upcoming training plans, which it would evaluate before allowing them to proceed. Meanwhile, ERTC began to threaten legal action if the Notice to Vacate was not rescinded. It was against this backdrop that tribal member and former ERTC employee Jeremy Ortiz and Jesse Durbin allegedly stole ERTC surveillance cameras, then poured gasoline on an ERTC guard shack and set it alight, kicking off the Eagle fire. Ortiz admitted to the crime, according to an arrest warrant in the criminal case file.

...During the last two weeks, the dispute has come to a head, with tribal police informing ERTC that its employees, customers and equipment would be ejected from the reservation. In response, ERTC filed a federal lawsuit on Sept. 16, asking for a temporary restraining order. The request was withdrawn when the tribe temporarily agreed to allow a military training event scheduled for Sept. 21 to go ahead. The overall dispute has not been resolved.

In filing the suit, ERTC released dozens of pages of records, including contracts, plans and correspondence that shine a light on how the military contractor attempted to bypass state and county regulations by building on Indian land.

As early as 2006, former Blackwater Vice President Brian Bonfiglio wanted to build a training facility in San Diego County. The initial plans were abandoned in 2008, following significant community outcry (though Bonfiglio asserted the activism had no impact on the decision). Around the same time, he approached the Los Coyotes tribe, an impoverished community that had long struggled to find a way to capitalize on land that was otherwise unsuitable for commercial development...

Brian “Bonfiglio?”  Interesting, because the Detroiters (Michael Malik/MJM Enterprises) at one time employed Barbara Bonfiglio, a rather connected GOP lobbyist in Washington, D.C.  Ms. Bonfiglio was so well connected that she got caught up in the political scandals that brought down House Speaker Tom DeLay, Senator Rick Santorum, and Reps. Richard Pombo and Don Young.  Then one day, without notice, she packed up her desk at Williams & Jensen, and went under the radar.  The firm was tight-lipped about her departure.  She’s since surfaced as an executive at Pfizer.

...In March 2010, Bonfiglio struck a six-year deal with the tribe’s chairperson, Francine Kupsch, under which the facility would be built on the reservation and the tribe would receive a 10-percent slice of the profits. In November 2010, Kupsch authorized an extension of the lease until 2035, with the added requirement that ERTC build a children’s playground and a 1,250-square-foot tribal office and hall. Two tribal members who owned part of the land that would become an asphalt driving track would receive $500 in monthly rent. The agreement also included a waiver of the tribe’s right to sovereign immunity from the U.S. court system.

What the document does not contain was the tribe’s official seal of approval, even though there’s a place for it on the agreement.

Kupsch was replaced as chairperson on Jan. 1 by Shane Chapparosa, under whose watch the tribe developed concerns with the 25-year agreement.... (Complete Story at SDCityBeat.com)

Poor Francine Kupsch, when she was of use to the Malik & his Detroiters, they trotted her out in Sacramento, exploited her personal circumstances with photos and stories they sent out over PR wires and had her stage a hunger-strike/sit-in on the grounds of the State Capitol.  Now, they’ve had her tossed out as Chair!  [Note to Tribal Chairs:  whenever the Detroiters, aka the bully Mike Malik, fear they’re losing their grip on your Tribe, they arrange a coup and toss out the Chair.  Take a look at the case of Los Coyotes respected elder Katherine Siva Saubel; or one-time Bay Mills Indian Community leader John Lufkins.]

Worth Consideration:  Los Coyotes, Barwest, Michael Malik ↔ Barbara Bonfiglio ↔ DeLay, Santorum, etc. ↔ GOP  ↔ Bush ↔ Texas ↔ Blackwater ↔ ERTC ↔ Brian Bonfiglio ↔ Los Coyotes

Is there any doubt that Detroiters Marian Ilitch and Mike Malik are behind this latest courtroom drama?

REGION: Military training firm sues Los Coyotes tribe over lease

10.09.2011

By EDWARD SIFUENTES

esifuentes@nctimes.com

...The lawsuit comes amid renewed efforts by the tribe to build a $160 million casino in Barstow, halfway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. The project, which has been in the works for nearly a decade, appeared to be dead three years ago. That is when the federal government denied an application to take a plot of land in Barstow into trust, which would make it part of the tribe's reservation, in order to build the casino.

Last year, the project got a second wind when the U.S. Department of Interior allowed an appeal to proceed.

To get the land transfer, Los Coyotes must prove, in part, that its reservation is unsuitable for business purposes. Critics of the casino project say the Eagle Rock lease agreement makes that argument less believable.

According to the lawsuit, Eagle Rock agreed to pay the tribe 10 percent of its profits, and build a new tribal hall and a children's playground, among other things.

Overall, the company has spent about $450,000 on rent payments and improvements to the children's park and training facilities, according to court documents.

Eagle Rock is asking the court to declare the lease agreement valid and to award the company compensatory damages, but does not give a specific amount.

In January, the tribe's leadership changed. Kupsch was replaced by Chairman Shane Chapparosa.

Radoff said there may have been a change in the tribe's plans when the new chairman came into office, but he declined to discuss "internal tribal deliberations."

Eagle Rock officials say they believed the tribe had approved the lease because the company had not been told otherwise, according to the lawsuit. Representatives of the company attended a tribal council meeting in January to discuss the children's park and gave members of the tribal council tours of the leased property in March... (Complete Story)

In August, two members of the Los Coyotes Tribe, Jeremy Ortiz and Jesse Durbin, were arrested on arson charges alleging they started what California authorities call the "Eagle Fire." That incident ended up burning 14,100 acres (22 square miles) in northern San Diego County this past July. Eighteen injuries occurred during the fire which cost California taxpayers  $15.5 million to battle.

It is alleged the Los Coyotes pair, Ortiz and Durbin, broke into the Eagle Rock Training Center (ERTC), disassembled surveillance cameras and then torched the guard shack at ERTC.

Torching 22 square miles... that's one way to validate claims that your reservation is uninhabitable or otherwise offers no natural resources of any value.  On the other hand, Barstow officials ought to be concerned about Los Coyotes' approach to dispute resolution!

Turmoil within Los Coyotes Tribe Comes to Light Following Eagle Fire; Concerns that Somehow Detroit-Based Barwest was Involved

Tribal tensions come to light following Eagle fire

8.27.2011

By Edward Sifuentes

ast month's fire on the Los Coyotes Indian Reservation near Warner Springs exposed tensions between the tribe, the company that is operating a military training center on the reservation, and the developer who is working to build an offsite casino on behalf of the tribe.

Those conflicts apparently had been simmering for months and centered on differences among tribal members about the best way to make money.

The fire apparently exacerbated those differences when two tribal members were arrested and charged with arson.

The tensions over the tribe's proposed casino and its business partners were revealed in an email exchange following the fire about how to respond to the arrests. 

The fire began at a guard shack belonging to the Eagle Rock Training Center, operated by a private firm on land leased from the tribe and used for military training and film productions.

A former training center employee, Jeremy Ortiz, 23, and another man, Jesse Durbin, 23, both tribal members, are accused of setting the fire on July 21, about 10:30 p.m.

Authorities have not said what may have motivated the two men to set the fire, which burned 22 square miles and took more than a week to extinguish.

Officials estimate that the firefighting efforts cost $15 million.

A Los Coyotes tribal member who spoke on the condition of anonymity said Ortiz had been pressured by some family members to quit his job as a security guard at the training center.

"He was getting a lot of flak for it," the tribal member said regarding Ortiz' employment at the training center. "He was being called a traitor."

Ortiz didn't want to quit the job but did so under pressure, the tribal member said.

"'I couldn't take it anymore,'" the tribal member said Ortiz told him after resigning.

According to authorities, Ortiz admitted that he poured gasoline at the guard shack and he said Durbin lit it on fire.

Ortiz reportedly told investigators that he had decided to burn down the shack when he and Durbin were passing by, according to an affidavit.

Less than a mile away from the shack, authorities found a Ford Expedition stuck and blocking the road, according to the affidavit.

The hood was still warm and inside the cab was a red plastic fuel container, a Bic lighter and cans of Keystone beer.

'Time to get real'

In a statement issued by Eagle Rock, the company said Ortiz had previously resigned his position and was eligible for rehire.

However, he had been in trouble with the company before and was on tribal court probation for an incident on Dec. 14, 2010.

The exact details of the incident were not available but he apparently challenged someone at the training center to a fight.

In a tribal court hearing on Feb. 16, Brian Bonfiglio, an official with Eagle Rock, asked the judge for leniency. Based on that testimony, the judge agreed to suspend a $1,700 fine if Ortiz agreed to stay out of trouble for one year.

By some accounts, Ortiz was a troubled young man who was looking to turn his life around. In his own Facebook page, Ortiz hinted at a difficult past.

"Thinking of going back to school and finding a career I enjoy," Ortiz wrote. "On my own now, so time to get real about the moves I make in this life."

The tribal member said he was surprised when he learned that Ortiz had been arrested. He said he did not know what may have caused Ortiz to set the blaze.

"I wish I knew," he said. "I told him if he had any problems to please come see me."

Casino dreams

A neighbor who lives near the reservation said she has heard tribal members lament that their tribe has not benefited from Indian gaming.

The Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeňo Indians contend they are one of the poorest tribes in San Diego County.

It was featured on ads promoting the passage of Proposition 1A in 2000, which legalized Las Vegas-style gambling on tribal lands. While other tribes in the region have prospered with large gambling operations, Los Coyotes has struggled to bring its casino dreams to fruition.

For nearly a decade, the tribe has pushed to build a casino in Barstow, halfway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Los Coyotes and its partner, Detroit-based LCB BarWest, LLC, hope to attract some of the gamblers headed to Las Vegas on Interstate 15.

Blogger's Note: LCB Barwest L.L.C. was formed in 2005 by agents of Detroit casino syndicators Michael J. Malik, Sr. and Marian Ilitch.  There are a total of 9 "Barwest" entities registered at the Michigan Department of Corporations presumed to be affiliated with Malik/Ilitch.  A tenth, Barwest, Inc. does not appear to be a Malik/Ilitch affiliate.  John Kotlar, vice president of Tax Affairs at Ilitch Holdings, is the resident agent of eight of those nine affiliates.  Attorney William Serwer, a Malik agent, is resident agent of the other one.

See Also: 

• Los Coyotes Tribal Member Arrested; Charged with Arson in 14,000-Acre Fire Started on Reservation

Los Coyotes Tribal Member Arrested; Charged with Arson in 14,000-Acre Fire Started on Reservation

The North County Times has reported an arson investigation into the July 2011 fire that burned more than 14,000 acres on the Los Coyotes Reservation in northeast San Diego County has resulted in two arrests.  At least one of those arrested, 23 year old Jeremy Ortiz, is a member of the Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla Indians.  Another suspect, Jesse Durbin, also 23, was already in custody on vehicle theft charges.  Both are being held on $2 million bail.

The fire, which was started on July 21 took more than a week to put out.  More than 2,000 personnel worked to put out the blaze at a cost to taxpayers of $15 million.

Neighbors living in Warm Springs near the reservation had expressed concerns about wildfires starting on the reservation based on decisions at the tribe’s sole discretion.

The North County Times notes:

The tribe has plans to build a casino in Barstow, near Interstate 15 in San Bernardino, halfway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. However, the project faces several hurdles before it can be built, including approval from the federal government and negotiations with the state for a gambling agreement.

North County Times
8.04.2011
LOS COYOTES RESERVATION: Two suspects arrested in Eagle fire
By Edward Sifuentes, esifuentes@nctimes.com



See also:

• Turmoil within Los Coyotes Tribe Comes to Light Following Eagle Fire; Concerns that Somehow Detroit-Based Barwest was Involved