BISMARCK — Ranita Lynn Freeman, 32, Minot, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Bismarck to serve 42 months in federal prison for stealing from accounts managed by the Department of the Interior Bureau of Trust Funds Administration, United States Attorney Nicholas Chase announced on June 16.

According to Chase, Freeman is one of three individuals sentenced in two separate schemes. Freeman was charged with wire fraud and aggravated identity theft for stealing $51,500 from two MHA Nation tribal members’ Individual Indian Money (IIM) accounts. IIM accounts are interest-bearing accounts for individuals who have money or other assets held in trust by the Department of the Interior and managed by the BTFA.

Freeman placed multiple calls to the BTFA-Fort Berthold Agency, where she fraudulently pretended to be the tribal members to obtain money from their accounts. The scheme stole $42,000 from one tribal member’s IMM account between August 2020 and January 2021, and an additional $9,500 from a second tribal member’s IIM account between January and April 2023.

Department of the Interior Inspector special agents identified Freeman as the caller when she called into the BTFA posing as one of these tribal members and they compared the caller’s voice to Freeman’s.

Freeman was also ordered to pay $51,500 in restitution and complete three years of supervised release.

Two other individuals were sentenced in a separate BTFA IIM fraud scheme, which occurred between November-December 2022. Wareagle Rollingthunder Martin, 39, and Samantha Lynn Rebold, 38, both of Fargo, were sentenced for stealing $11,695.92 from an MHA national tribal members’ IIIM account by taking photographs of the tribal member’s personal identifying information. Rebold provided the photos to Martin, who then contacted the BTFA-Fort Berthold Agency pretending to be the MHA national tribal member. Martin requested the money be disbursed to a bank account he controlled.

Martin was sentenced before Judge Daniel Traynor to two years imprisonment, one year of supervised release and restitution of $11,695.92 on a charge of aggravated identity theft. Rebold was sentenced to time served, three years of supervised probation and restitution of $11,695.92 on a charge of wire fraud.

Fraud is especially sinister because it hurts victims in many ways,” Chase said. “As this case shows, when criminals steal money through fraud schemes, they often steal something even more personal, the identities of innocent people whose names, financial accounts, and personal information are exploited for criminal gain. Prosecuting fraud and identity theft offenses remains one of the highest priorities of this office because these crimes can cause lasting financial and emotional harm to victims. Today’s sentence reflects our commitment to holding fraudsters accountable and protecting the public from those who seek to profit through deception and the misuse of others’ personal information.”