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The former Dances With Wolves The actor accused of leading a cult could face various felonies and life in prison after police said he sexually assaulted young Indigenous girls and took several wives during a period spanning twenty years, court records obtained by The Associated Press show.
On Wednesday, Nathan Lee Chasing Horse, who went by Nathan Chasing Horse, will be charged with at least two counts of sex trafficking and one count each of sexual assault of a child younger than 16, child abuse or neglect and sexual assault, according to records. Authorities have not said when he will be formally charged.
If convicted on two counts of sex trafficking, he could face up to 20 years in prison, and he could face life in prison if convicted on one count of sexual assault.
Meanwhile, police in the First Nation in Alberta said Wednesday they have been working with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department for weeks to identify potential victims in the province.
The Tsuut’ina Nation Police Service said in a statement released Wednesday that it is also working with Calgary police to review historical sexual assault files.
Arrested on Tuesday
Las Vegas police took Chasing Horse into custody Tuesday afternoon when he left the North Las Vegas home that, according to the warrant, he shared with five wives.
He was booked just before midnight into the Clark County Jail, where he remains being held without bail on Wednesday morning’s sexual assault charges.
Three women were seen in custody outside Chasing Horse’s home Tuesday evening as detectives searched the property, but police have not released details about potential charges against them or their connection to Chasing Horse.
Known for his role as a young Sioux tribe member Smiles a Lot in Kevin Costner’s Oscar-winning film. Dances With Wolves, Chasing Horse gained a reputation among tribes in the US and Canada as a so-called medicine man who performed healing ceremonies and, according to police, used his position to abuse Native American girls.
The 46-year-old actor was also in the 2007 HBO film Bury My Heart at Wounded Kneewhich was taken in Calgary.
The arrests resulted from a months-long investigation
His arrest is the culmination of a months-long investigation that began after the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department received a tip in October 2022.
And it comes as state attorneys and lawmakers across the U.S. seek to create special units to handle cases involving Native American women.
In South Dakota, where police said some of the alleged crimes of Chasing Horse have occurred, the attorney general’s office has put a new focus on crimes against Native Americans, including human trafficking and murder.
According to a search warrant obtained by The Associated Press, Chasing Horse is believed to be the leader of a cult known as The Circle.
Las Vegas police noted in the warrant that they have identified at least six alleged victims and uncovered sexual allegations against Chasing Horse dating to the early 2000s in several states, including Montana, South Dakota and Nevada, where he has lived for about a decade.
According to the warrant, he was removed in 2015 from the Fort Peck Reservation in Poplar, Mont., amid allegations of human trafficking.
No attorney listed for Chasing Horse could be reached for comment on his behalf as of Wednesday morning. He will be in court Thursday in North Las Vegas.
Chasing Horse, 46, was born on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota, which is home to the Sicangu Sioux, one of the seven Lakota tribes.
The alleged victim is 13 years old
“Nathan Chasing Horse used spiritual traditions and belief systems as tools to sexually assault girls on multiple occasions,” detectives wrote in the warrant, adding that his followers believed they could communicate with higher beings and called “Medicine Man” or “Saint.”
Some of the alleged victims were as young as 13, according to the warrant. One of Chasing Horse’s wives was allegedly offered as a “gift” when she was 15, while the other became his wife after she turned 16.
Chasing Horse is also accused of recording sexual assaults and arranging for victims to have sex with other men who paid them.
Although the warrant included details of crimes reported elsewhere, Tuesday’s arrest stemmed from crimes allegedly committed in Nevada’s Clark County.
Support is available to anyone who has been sexually assaulted. You can access crisis lines and local support services through this Government of Canada website or in Ending Violence Association of Canada database. If you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety or the safety of others around you, call 911.
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