NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev. (AP) — Victims, police detectives and federal agents are expected to speak in court Monday before a judge decides whether to grant bail to a former “Dances With Wolves” actor accused of sexually abusing Indigenous girls and leading a cult during a period spanning two decades.
Known for his role as young Sioux tribe member Smiles a Lot in Kevin Costner’s Oscar-winning film, Chasing Horse built a reputation for himself among tribes across the United States and in Canada as a “medicine man” who performed healing ceremonies. He was born on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota, which is home to the Sicangu Sioux, one of the seven tribes of the Lakota nation.
Police said he abused his position, physically and sexually assaulted Indigenous girls and took underage wives over two decades. Detectives who searched the property found guns, 41 pounds of marijuana and psilocybin mushrooms, and a memory card with multiple videos of sexual assaults, according to an arrest report released Wednesday.Las Vegas police said in the search warrant that at least six victims had been identified, including one who was 13 when she says she was abused and another who says she was offered to him as a “gift” when she was 15.