On Tuesday, Las Vegas police arrested a “Dances with Wolves” actor, turned alleged cult leader, in a raid on his home. The actor is accused of sexually assaulting young indigenous girls during a period spanning two decades, police records obtained by the Associated Press reveal.
Nathan Lee Chasing His Horse, who goes by Nathan Chasing Horse, was taken into custody on Tuesday afternoon near his home in North Las Vegas, which he allegedly shares with five wives.
SWAT officers were seen outside the two-story home in the evening as detectives searched the property.
Chasing Horse’s best known role is that of a young Sioux tribe member, Smiles a Lot, in the Oscar-winning Kevin Costner film.
The actor is believed to be the leader of a cult, known as “The Circle,” according to a 50-page search warrant obtained by the AP. He gained a reputation among Native American tribes throughout the United States and Canada as a so-called medicine man, who performed healing ceremonies and spiritual gatherings. Police allege he used his position to abuse young Native American girls.
The arrest is the culmination of a monthslong investigation, which began after police received a tip in October 2022, and comes as state attorneys general and lawmakers across the U.S. are beginning to look into cases involving Native American women, with some creating specialized units to handle such cases, such as in South Dakota where a new focus has been placed on human trafficking and murders of indigenous people.
The warrant states that Las Vegas police have identified at least six alleged victims and uncovered sexual allegations against Chasing Horse dating to the early 2000s in multiple states, including Montana, South Dakota and Nevada where he has lived for about a decade.
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.
The warrant claims that he was banished in 2015 from the Fort Peck Reservation in Poplar, Montana, amid allegations of human trafficking.
“Nathan Chasing Horse used spiritual traditions and their belief system as a tool to sexually assault young girls on numerous occasions,” it reads, adding that his followers believed he could communicate with higher beings and referred to him as “Medicine Man” or “Holy Person.”
Although the warrant includes details of crimes reported elsewhere, the arrest stems from crimes allegedly committed in Nevada’s Clark County. They include sex trafficking, sexual assault of a child younger than 16 and child abuse. Some of Chasing Horse’s victims were allegedly as young as 13.
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