The former principal chief of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation has been sentenced to one year in prison and fined $10,000 for his role in a bribery scheme, federal prosecutors announced on Thursday.
George Phillip Tiger, 70, of Bristow, pleaded guilty last year in federal court to bribery related to work he did for the Wetumka-based Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town. Tiger was no longer chief at the time prosecutors say he solicited and accepted the bribe.
Prosecutors also announced that 64-year-old Aaron Dewayne Terry, of Wichita Falls, Texas, was sentenced to four years in prison and ordered to pay $1.2 million in restitution for his role in the scheme. Terry was also sentenced to three years in prison on federal tax charges.
The Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town is a federally recognized Indian tribe with 461 enrolled members. Tiger worked as an agent for the tribe when prosecutors say he accepted a bribe from Terry.
“Instead of acting in the best interests of those he was appointed to serve, Tiger sought out and received unlawful profit for himself,” U.S. Attorney Brian Kuester said in a statement.
