New Mashpee Chair Charged with Theft from Museum

Police in Plymouth, Mass. have charged the chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe in with the theft of four artifacts from a local museum, The Mashpee Enterprise reports.

Brian Weeden, 30, who is also the head of the tribe’s gaming commission, and another man, Phillip C. Hicks Jr, also 30, are alleged to have taken two bulrush mats and two bearskin rugs from the Plimoth Patuxet Museums. The items were exhibited inside a traditional Mashpee domed hut, known as a wetu, and are worth around $10K in total.

Weeden was elected in May 2021 with a promise to “restore integrity” to the tribe. That was after the federal indictment of its previous chair, Cedric Cromwell, on charges of bribery and tax evasion.

Cromwell’s Downfall

Cromwell was ultimately convicted of accepting bribes in connection with the proposed $1 billion First Light casino resort, which the tribe has been trying to build for years in Taunton Mass.

In a memo to the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts on Monday, US District Attorney Rachael Rollins argued that Cromwell should pay restitution to the tribe for the reputational damage he caused.

She cited “distrust in potential lenders for the [casino] project, impeding the Tribe’s ability to obtain financing for economic development.”

A heavily redacted police report seen by the Enterprise reveals the items reputedly taken by Weeden and Hicks have since been returned to the museum. The report doesn’t list the specific charges against the pair.

Museum security showed three individuals loading the artifacts into a Chevrolet Traverse, which was traced to Weeden.

Hostility to Museum

The Mashpee chair denied all knowledge of the incident to the Enterprise and has refused to respond to a request for comment from other media outlets.

Plimoth Patuxet is a popular “living history” museum featuring historical re-enactors. They portray 17th-century life in Plymouth, the settlement founded by the Pilgrims who arrived on the Mayflower and interacted with the Wampanoag people at the “first Thanksgiving.”

Critics also claim the museum has failed to properly care for Native exhibits and isn’t hiring or retaining enough tribal members.

Long Wait for First Light

The First Light Casino project was halted in 2016 amid legal challenges. It got a boost in December last year when the Biden Administration reaffirmed the tribe’s sovereignty and right to reservation land that includes the casino site.