Judge: Indian tribe a ‘complete sham’

Three men who claimed they constituted an entire Indian tribe have been ordered to pay $63,000 for civil racketeering violations.
The men called themselves the “Wampanoag Nation.” Unlike the Wampanoag Tribe — a traditional Indian group with a long history and a reservation on Martha’s Vineyard — the Wampanoag Nation was founded at an Arby’s restaurant in Provo, Utah, in 2003.
“As an Indian tribe, the Wampanoag Nation is a complete sham,” ruled U.S. District Court Judge Stephen P. Friot.
According to Friot, the men had combined with a fourth man, who calls himself the Presiding Patriarch of the Order of the White Light, to file bogus arbitration judgments against local officials. They also tried to stop their truck from being impounded by police by claiming it was an “Indian licensed vehicle.”
Source: Deseret News