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Nathan Chasing Horse, an American actor who starred in Dances With Wolves has been arrested for allegedly running a cult which sexually abused young indigenous girls.
The 46-year-old who played Smiles a Lot in the 1990 Oscar-winning film, was taken into custody on Tuesday afternoon, January 31, near the North Las Vegas home he is said to share with his five wives.
‘Nathan Chasing Horse used spiritual traditions and their belief system as a tool to sexually assault young girls on numerous occasions,’ an arrest warrant reads, adding that his followers believed he could communicate with higher beings and referred to him as ‘Medicine Man’ or ‘Holy Person.’
Police allege he also used his position to abuse young Native American girls, some as young as 13.
SWAT officers were seen outside the two-story home in the evening as detectives searched the property.
Chasing Horse’s arrest is the culmination of a months-long investigation that began after police received a tip in October 2022, AP reported.
According to a 50-page search warrant obtained by AP, Chasing Horse is believed to be the leader of a cult known as The Circle.
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.
Dances With Wolves was his first film: he went on to star in four subsequent TV movies, including Into the West, and Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.
In 2018, according to the warrant, he was banished from the Fort Peck Reservation in Poplar, Montana, amid allegations of human trafficking.
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 the alleged victims were as young as 13, according to the warrant.
One of Chasing Horse’s wives was allegedly offered to him as a ‘gift’ when she was 15, while another became a wife after turning 16.
Chasing Horse also is accused of recording sexual assaults and arranging sex with the victims for other men who allegedly paid him.
