West News Wire: A former Dances with Wolves actor was expected to appear before a court on Thursday. He is accused of sexually abusing Indigenous girls and is charged with at least five felonies.
According to court documents, Nathan Chasing Horse, 46, might be charged with sex trafficking and sexual assault. Prosecutors in Clark County have not said when or if more charges will be brought against him.
Following a two-decade-long investigation into allegations of abuse, Las Vegas police arrested Chasing Horse last week.
On Wednesday night, he was still being held without bond in a jail in Clark County. On Thursday, a judge is anticipated to discuss his custody situation and may decide to set bail.
Known for his role as young Sioux tribe member Smiles a Lot in the Oscar-winning Kevin Costner film, Chasing Horse gained a reputation among tribes across the US and in Canada for performing healing ceremonies.
He is believed to be the leader of a cult known as the Circle, with a strong following of people who believed he could communicate with higher powers, according to an arrest warrant.
Police said he abused his position, physically and sexually assaulting girls and women, taking underage wives and leading the cult. He was arrested outside the home he shares with his five wives near Las Vegas.
Chasing Horse was born on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota, home to the Sicangu Sioux, one of the seven tribes of the Lakota nation.
A 50-page search warrant claimed Chasing Horse trained his wives to use firearms, instructing them to “shoot it out” with police if they tried to “break their family apart”. If that failed, the wives were to take “suicide pills”.
He was taken into custody as he left his home in North Las Vegas. Swat officers were seen outside the two-story home as detectives searched it.
Police found found firearms, 41lb of marijuana and psilocybin mushrooms and a memory card with multiple videos of sexual assaults, according to an arrest report released on Wednesday. Additional charges could be filed in connection with the videos of the underage girls, the report said.
There was no lawyer listed in court records who could comment on his behalf. Las Vegas police said Chasing Horse was “unable” to give a jailhouse interview.
