2nd Man Sentenced For Tribal Embezzlement

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- A Brainerd man has been sentenced for embezzling more than $600,000 from the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe.

A federal judge sentenced 31-year-old Eric Makowski to 2-and-a-half years in prison on one count of embezzlement from a tribal organization.

Makowski was a construction project manager for the band. In his plea agreement, he admitted that between 2005 and June 2007 he coordinated fraudulent and excessive payments to contractors, then arranged kickbacks from a vendor.

Last month, 33-year-old Jason Heinlen of Belle Plaine was sentenced to five years of probation for aiding and abetting the embezzlement.

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