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Written by Administrator
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Saturday, 20 November 2010 |
Ex-Mohawk chief indicted
FREED ON BAIL: Tarbell accused of transporting 95 pounds of marijuana
By DAVID WINTERS
TIMES STAFF WRITER
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2010
A former chief of the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe was indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury for reportedly transporting about 95 pounds of marijuana.
Philip H. Tarbell, 68, Hogansburg, was charged with possession with intent to distribute less than 50 kilograms of marijuana, federal court records show. He was released Thursday from federal custody by posting $10,000 bail. He was accused of hiding the marijuana in two hockey bags in the back of a minivan when stopped Nov. 11 at a U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint on Route 9 just outside the village of Schroon Lake, Essex County, federal authorities said.
Mr. Tarbell was accused of having about 23 pounds of marijuana after a traffic stop in December on Route 11 in the town of Adams, state police said. Attorney Michael Rhodes-Devey, representing Mr. Tarbell, said Wednesday that the charges in LeRay Town Court were dismissed because the district attorney's office did not appear for a preliminary hearing.
Mr. Tarbell is the chief executive of the constitutional government, which in 1999 was stripped of federal recognition as the leadership of the tribe in favor of a three-chief government system. Constitutional backers are appealing the decision. Mr. Tarbell was a leader in the former tribal government.
He was among three people who led a march in May 1994 on Route 37 in Hogansburg. He helped carry a banner proclaiming "Akwesasne Against Drugs." The men were running for St. Regis Mohawk tribal chief.
http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20101119/NEWS05/311199959
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