Cedric Cromwell was sentenced last month to three years in prison for soliciting bribes, but remains free while he appeals the conviction. David DeQuattro of the Rhode Island architecture firm that was overseeing several projects for the Tribe received probation for his part.
The Tribe was extremely disappointed in the decision to allow Cromwell to remain free and the probation for DeQuattro. The Tribe petitioned the court for the maximum sentence because that is the justice the Mashpee Wampanoag deserved. The corruption that both men were guilty of diverted funds from programs and services that needed it and robbed the community of the trust they placed in elected tribal officials.
US District Judge Douglas P. Woodlock said he agreed with tribal members, who told the court they had suffered oppression by the federal government for hundreds of years, only to be betrayed by a tribal leader.
“We do a great disservice to the tribe if we do not recognize the loss they have received, partly at the hands of Mr. Cromwell,” Woodlock said. He also fined Cromwell $25,000 and said he’ll consider a request from the tribe for restitution.
However, the judge found that David DeQuattro, the architect convicted of a single bribery count, should not go to prison because he didn’t initiate the bribes and had been “overtaken with a desire to be a friend” to Cromwell.
DeQuattro, 56, of Warwick, R.I., was placed on probation for a year, to be served under home confinement, and fined $50,000.
In May, a federal jury in Boston convicted Cromwell of conspiracy to commit extortion, three extortion counts and two bribery counts for soliciting gifts and a $10,000 payment from DeQuattro on behalf of Robinson Green Beretta Corp., known as RGB Architects. At the time DeQuattro worked for the company, which he now owns.
The jury found DeQuattro guilty of bribery for paying for Cromwell’s three-night stay at the Seaport Hotel in Boston for his birthday in 2017, and $1,700 for a used Bowflex Revolution home gym.
Tribal Council Chairman Brian Weeden, sent a message to tribal members following the sentencing, vowed to seek fairness in our traditional circles. Chairman Weeden also does not want this to remain a distraction. “We will receive justice while continuing to focus our energy as a sovereign nation on what’s critical today, building a thriving Wampanoag Tribe for the next seven generations.”
