SOUTH BEND - Charles Hartsell, age 48, of Bremen, Indiana
was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Damon R. Leichty for
conspiracy to sell and dispose of one or more firearms to an unlawful user of
controlled substances, announced United States Attorney Thomas L. Kirsch II.
Hartsell was sentenced to 46 months in prison followed by 2
years of supervised release.
According to documents in this case, in February of 2019,
Mr. Hartsell met a male associate at the Four Winds South Bend casino, which is
located on tribal land of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. The two men
transferred a .22 rifle and a 9 mm pistol from the associate’s car to Mr.
Hartsell’s car. Mr. Hartsell then drove with his associate to a location in
South Bend in order to meet a man referred to as “J”, who was known by Mr.
Hartsell to be a drug user. Mr. Hartsell tried to sell the two firearms to “J”,
but “J” decided not to purchase the two firearms. Mr. Hartsell and his
associate then purchased some heroin and methamphetamine from “J” and drove
back to the casino. When they arrived back at the casino, Mr. Hartsell and his
associate were detained by Pokagon Band tribal police officers. The two
firearms were recovered from Mr. Hartsell’s car by police.
“The United States has an important relationship with the
Pokagon Band of the Potawatomi Indians and crimes that occur on this
federally-recognized tribal land of the Pokagon Band will be taken seriously by
my Office,” said U.S. Attorney Thomas L. Kirsch. “We will continue to work in unison with the
Pokagon Band to protect the safety of its tribal citizens, while respecting the
Pokagon Band’s sovereignty and culture.”
Pokagon Police Chief William Lux said, “The Pokagon Band of
Potawatomi Indians is a federally-recognized sovereign nation and is committed
to working with our law enforcement partners in the U.S. government to protect
all who visit its trust land and to prosecute those who violate the law on
Pokagon land. This case is a great example of team work between our officers,
Pokagon Tribal Police Investigations Unit and the St. Joseph County Police
Department. We appreciate the support of the FBI and U.S. Attorney Kirsch in
prosecuting Mr. Hartsell for crimes committed while at Four Winds South Bend,
which is on sovereign Pokagon Band land.”
This case was investigated by the FBI and ATF with the
assistance of the Pokagon Tribal Police Department and to St. Joseph County
Police Department. The case was prosecuted by U.S. Attorney Thomas L. Kirsch II
and Assistant U.S. Attorney Luke N. Reilander
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