ALTURAS, Calif. — A woman suspected of killing four people at the headquarters of an Indian tribe that was evicting her and her son from its land had been under federal investigation over at least $50,000 in missing funds, a person familiar with the tribe’s situation told The Associated Press on Friday.
Investigators were looking into whether Cherie Lash Rhoades had taken federal grants to the Cedarville Rancheria tribe, said the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the case.
Rhoades was recently ousted as the tribe’s chairwoman.
Authorities said she killed three family members and a worker and critically wounded two other people at the headquarters in the small community of Alturas in far Northern California during a meeting on Thursday about her eviction.
Those killed included the suspect’s brother, 50-year-old Rurik Davis; her niece, 19-year-old Angel Penn; and her nephew, 30-year-old Glenn Calonicco, said Modoc County Sheriff Mike Poindexter.
The other person killed was Shelia Lynn Russo, 47, a tribal administrator who managed evictions and was the mother of two teenagers, said her mother, Linda Stubblefield of Taft.
One of the people wounded was alert and talking. The other remained in critical condition, said Alturas Police Chief Ken Barnes.
Barnes said children were inside the building and on the property when the shooting occurred. After running out of bullets, police said, Rhoades grabbed a knife and stabbed a woman.
Rhoades was booked on suspicion of homicide, attempted murder, child endangerment and brandishing a weapon.
