Dances With Wolves actor due in court for alleged sexual abuse of indigenous girls
Nathan Lee Chasing His Horse is best known for playing Smiles a Lot in Dances With Wolves.
A former Dances With Wolvesactor who faces at least five felonies for allegedly sexually abusing indigenous girls is scheduled to face a judge for the first time in the case on Thursday.
The possible charges against Nathan Lee Chasing His Horse, 46, include sex trafficking and sexual assault, according to court records. Clark County prosecutors have not said when they will formally charge him or whether more charges will be filed.
Las Vegas police arrested Chasing Horse this week following a months-long investigation into alleged abuse that authorities said spanned two decades.
He remained held at a Clark County jail without bail Wednesday evening on the sexual assault charges. A judge on Thursday is expected to address his custody status and could 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 United States and in Canada as a so-called medicine man who performed 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 indigenous 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, which is home to the Sicangu Sioux, one of the seven tribes of the Lakota nation.
A 50-page search warrant obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press claimed Chasing Horse trained his wives to use firearms, instructing them to “shoot it out” with police officers 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 in the evening as detectives searched the property.
Police found firearms, 41 pounds (18.5 kilograms) of marijuana and psilocybin mushrooms, and a memory card with multiple videos of sexual assaults, according to an arrest report released Wednesday.
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