Former Principal Chief indicted for bribery

George Phillip Tiger

MUSKOGEE, Okla. (AP) – The former principal chief of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation has been indicted for bribery.

Federal prosecutors said Wednesday that 69-year-old George Phillip Tiger of Bristow is accused of bribery while serving as an agent of the Wetumka-based Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town, which is affiliated with the Muscogee (Creek) Nation.

Prosecutors say Tiger, who was the Muscogee (Creek) Nation’s principal chief from 2011 to 2015, was chairman of an Alabama-Quassarte economic development board that received federal funds. The indictment alleges he solicited and accepted a bribe between September 2017 and February 2019 that concerned tribal transactions of at least $5,000.

A listed phone number for Tiger was unavailable and court records don’t list an attorney for him. Nelson Harjo, chief of the Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town, didn’t immediately return a call seeking comment.