Jessica Engle pleaded guilty Wednesday to embezzling $579,574 from the Yurok Tribe in northern California.
Engle, a resident of Gold Hill, Oregon, was appointed CEO of Yurok Telecommunications Corporation after serving as director of the tribe's information services department. Prosecutors say that between July 2021 and May 2022 Engle used her position to embezzle tribal funds.
A federal grand jury indicted Engle on charges of embezzling from a tribal organization and theft from programs receiving federal funds on Sept. 25, 2024.
She faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the federal theft charge and up to five years in prison and another $250,000 fine for embezzlement.
Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 14, 2026, in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
