A call about a gunshot near the home of David Sickey, the chairman of the Coushatta Tribe in Louisiana, is being investigated by police in Jefferson Davis Parish.
Authorities reported that the incident occurred on Sunday at approximately 11:15 PM.
Reports have stated that a bullet had gone through the window of Sickey’s kid.
There have been no reports of injury.
After much controversy, in 2024, Jonathan Cernek left his post, which will now be held by Sickey once again.
Sickey had been the chairman between 2017-2021 and had led it through COVID as well as a multitude of natural disasters.
The tribe has been operating several notable businesses, among them is the Coushatta Casino Resort.
Chief Once Again
The people of the Tribe voted to re-elect Sickey during a recent tribal leader election.
Sickey led a campaign aimed at unifying his community by letting people have more sway in decisions.
He has made a statement, saying from Day One he will begin implementing the things he has promised.
On June 11th, Sickey will be sworn in as the Chairman-elect.
Multiple times during his campaign, Sickey made speeches emphasizing the importance of community:
“This victory belongs to our entire community. Tonight, tribal members chose collaborative leadership, transparency, and a government that truly serves its people. I am deeply honored by their trust and ready to get to work immediately.”
Possible Credit Card Fraud
The previous chairman, Jonathan Cernek, is being investigated by multiple federal agencies for alleged financial misconduct.
A copy of the documents, which had been sent to the Coushatta Tribal Council last year, outlining accusations all the way back to 2023, has been obtained by the Illuminator.
These documents, which were provided by the previous general manager and chief financial officer, Tod Stewart, contain everything he had learned, including delivery invoices to Cernek’s house.
Paula Corlis, the venue’s purchasing manager, has shared that a year after she left, a letter had been delivered to the Coushatta Tribal Gaming Commission, which had accused her of failure to cooperate with the investigation.
This has led to the suspension of her gaming license.
Corlis had this to say on the matter:
“They had to investigate without me. Nobody ever asked me anything from the [Coushatta Tribal Gaming] Commission. I don’t know how much more I could cooperate.”
A spokesperson for the casino has stated that the reason for Corlis’s termination was the violation of security protocols.
Corlis, however, shared her idea about the reason for her termination, despite her 30-year history working for the casino, had to do with her not calling security when Cernek had made an unannounced visit, where he shared he had apologized to some tribe elders and that he believed he had hurt those close to him.