Posted by [EMAIL PROTECTED] : link sent via FN by Pat..thanks! Man sought for questioning in death threats; Oneidas increase http://www.newsday.com/ap/rnmpmt0m.htm ONEIDA, N.Y. (AP) - State police said Wednesday they are seeking a man for questioning in connection with death threats made against the Oneida Indian Nation. Meanwhile, tribal leaders doubled the reward they are offering to catch the whoever made the threats. Capt. John Wood stressed that the man being sought by state police is not a suspect in the case even though he was videotaped passing a handwritten copy of the threat to a clerk at the Oneida's Sav-On gas station in Canastota on Nov. 5. "This person is not considered a suspect," Wood said at a news conference, "but someone who can maybe provide information about the origins of the letter or at least explain why he passed this note to the clerk." The man was described as being in his late teens to late 20s, about 5-foot, 5 inches tall and thinly built. Up to the time he passed the note, the man had been a regular customer at the station, Wood said. Security has been heightened at the Oneida's Turning Stone casino in Verona and other tribal businesses since the threatening letter was sent to a local newspaper on Oct. 29. In the letter, a group calling itself the United States National Freedom Fighters threatened to kill Oneidas, bomb their businesses and attack their non-Indian customers. The note handed over to the gas station clerk was not an exact duplicate of the original letter, Wood said. The man's note used some different words and contained some misspellings not in the original, he said. The Oneidas have viewed the letter as a scare tactic intended to disrupt their lucrative businesses. At least one group canceled its stay at the casino's convention center but tribal leaders have said that otherwise business has been normal. The Oneidas, with the support of the U.S. Justice Department, are suing the state and counties of Madison and Oneida for the return of 250,000 acres of ancestral land. The U.S. Supreme Court found in 1985 that most of the land was seized in questionable transactions with the state and private individuals and ruled the Oneidas were entitled to compensation. Thirteen years of on-and-off talks have failed to produce a settlement. A federal settlement master was appointed in February and is presently trying to negotiate an out-of-court agreement. A task force led by the FBI and state police continues to investigate the threat. Wood said authorities have investigated approximately 300 leads so far. Oneida Nation Police Chief John Folino said tribal leaders thought doubling the reward to $50,000 might generate renewed interest and produce additional leads for authorities to pursue. AP-ES-12-08-99 1603EST Copyright © Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Reprinted under the Fair Use http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html doctrine of international copyright law. <><<<<<>>>>><><<<<> Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit) http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/ <><<<<<>>>>><><<<<>
