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After more than 20 years at the helm of the Quapaw Nation, former Chairman John Berrey was soundly defeated in July by Joseph Tali Byrd.
Now, following an internal audit and growing questions from tribal citizens, the new tribal administration is alleging Berrey and the tribe’s former secretary treasurer illegally doled out more than $34 million worth of pay raises, bonuses, severance pay and donations, including more than $4 million dollars to former University of Oklahoma football coach Barry Switzer. The Quapaw Nation confirmed today the tribe is looking closely into potential criminal conduct on the part of several former employees and tribal officials, including former Quapaw Nation Tribal Chairman John Berrey and former Quapaw Nation Secretary/Treasurer Tamara Smiley-Reeves,” Byrd said in a statement.