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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2002

Senator and candidate for Alaska governor Frank Murkowski was president of a bank that breached its trust to an Alaska Native village corporation.

Bering Straits Native Corp., a regional corporation, deposited more than $19 million into the bank during the 1970s. Some of the money was for Sitnasauk Native Corp., a village corporation.

A state court found that the bank breached its trust responsibilities to Sitnasauk. The corporation was awarded $10 million in 1986. The bank failed in 1988.

Murkowski said the failures occurred in the bank's trust department, which he said was controlled independently. Robbie Fagerstrom, president and chief executive of CEO held a press conference on the issue.

"Frank Murkowski was clearly head of the bank while the bank breached its trust with us," he said, according to The Anchorage Daily News. "Now he wants to be governor, the chief executive of the state of Alaska. I leave it to you to decide whether this reflects on his abilities to do that job."

Get the Story:
Corporation tells of '70s bank losses (The Anchorage Daily News 10/11)