3 more Spirit Lake officials plead not guilty

GRAND FORKS, N.D. (AP) – All five Spirit Lake tribal officers and employees indicted on theft and embezzlement charges have now pleaded not guilty.

U.S. Attorney Timothy Purdon says three defendants entered their pleas on Monday: Patricia Robertson, coordinator of the North Dakota tribe's Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program; Brooke Black, an employee of the tribe's Food Distribution Program; and Tribal Councilman Carl Walking Eagle.

Walking Eagle's wife, Barbara, a librarian at the community college in Fort Totten, and Tribal Councilman Justin Yankton entered not guilty pleas earlier.