Tribal chief may return to Nevada to face charges

Tuesday, Nov. 10, 1998 | 12:04 p.m.

Lionel Ahdunko appeared Monday before U.S. Magistrate Ricardo Martinez on two felony counts of making false statements. Martinez released him on his personal recognizance and scheduled the hearing, at which time Ahdunko could plead guilty or agree to return to Reno to face the charges, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence Lincoln.

The charges stem from an accident that occurred in March 1997, while Ahdunko was Washoe tribal police chief. He was driving a pickup truck owned by the government and made available to Washoe police, and had a collision with a private vehicle owned by a tribal probation officer.

An accident report filed with the General Services Administration at the time indicated the accident occurred while Ahdunko was on tribal business. However, Bureau of Indian Affairs investigators contend Ahdunko was actually on private business.

If convicted of the charges, Ahdunko could face up to five years' imprisonment.

The Makah are preparing to resume their tradition of gray-whale hunting, which has brought protesters to the reservation at the tip of Washington's Olympic Peninsula.

Ahdunko oversees security for the Makah, and has been criticized by protesters for his handling of violence that broke out during an anti-whaling demonstration in Neah Bay last month.