Suspect has history of strange lawsuits
Woman tried to ‘take the land back’ by claiming property as an American Indian
She had grievances against many that she poured into bizarre lawsuits in which she cited international conventions and demanded payment in silver and gold.
Tonia Scott was angry with assessment offices in the Poconos and beyond, for denying her lands that she insisted she was entitled to as an American Indian. She was angry with her water company, her cable company and her electrical company, for sending her bills while occupying properties she said were rightfully her people’s. She made similar claims against Wawa and Turkey Hill, and a Lehigh County woman
whose home she toured in 2017 when it was up for sale.
But on Monday, Scott’s anger turned to violence, authorities said, when the 49-year-old selfproclaimed member of the Iroquois nation tried to “take the land back” by besieging a private housing development in Lehman Township, Pike County. Scott told investigators that she was the rightful owner of the Pine Ridge community and had been trying for more than two years to regain control of it, according to the arrest affidavit.
State police said that for the armed plot, Scott recruited six others — none of whom are identified as American Indian in court filings — for a failed occupation in which they broke into the development’s clubhouse and handcuffed a security guard at gunpoint. Scott and her alleged accomplices are now being held without bail in Pike County jail on a slew of felony charges that include terrorism, kidnapping, aggravated assault, robbery and burglary.
Court records show that Scott had unsuccessfully sued Pine Ridge in federal court in 2017, claiming the properties were hers and seeking to eject all the residents. She also similarly sued another Lehman Township development, Saw Creek Estates, where she once owned a home that she apparently lost in a tax sale.
Those lawsuits were only two of many by Scott. In one day in 2016 alone, she filed nine suits in U.S. District Court in Pennsylvania, all of which were dismissed within weeks by a judge in Scranton who called them “plainly frivolous” and hard to decipher.
In one of her suits, Scott sought $20 million in “tungsten-free 99% pure silver and gold coins,” her filing shows. In another, she demanded that assessors in Lehigh County; Monroe County; White Plains, New York; and Greenburgh, New York, grant her title to properties she claimed in their communities. In a third, she likened deputy sheriffs in Pike County to “modern and historical genocidal paid mercenaries.”
Pike County District Attorney Raymond Tonkin wouldn’t comment Wednesday on Scott’s litigation, or whether her background is of interest to investigators. Tonkin said Tuesday that the alleged crime was like “nothing we’ve seen before.”
Also charged are Sekou Rashid-Abdullah, age unknown, of Houston; Keeba Harris, 43, of Bushkill, Pike County; Sushane S. Adams-Heylinger, 26, of Binghamton, New York; Musa Abdur-Rahim, 27, of Binghamton; Adam Abdur Rahim, 31, of Houston; and Troy A. Sutton, 50, of Brooklyn, New York.
Several civil court records list Scott with a New York City address. Police said she and her group met Sunday at a McDonald’s in Manhattan to go over their plans, which allegedly called for driving two hours to the Poconos and taking over both Pine Ridge and Saw Creek, the other Lehman Township development.
Several of the men claimed to police that they believed Scott had legitimate documents proving her ownership to the land, according to court records. At least two of the men moved from Houston to help Scott with the plot, in which she allegedly promised them homes for only $1 year and weekly salaries as her employees, authorities said.
To one Lehigh County woman, news of Scott’s arrest was a relief. Elizabeth A. Benke was selling her Salisbury Township home in 2017 when Scott came forward to claim the property was hers, citing “Aboriginal title,” according to civil court records.
Scott did so under a “Declaration of Ownership Affidavit” that she filed with the recorder of deed’s office. Two weeks later, Scott toured the house, surprising the real estate agent at the end of the tour by claiming she owned it, Benke remembered.
“She handed my Realtor all this paperwork saying this house was hers, and she actually said to the Realtor, ‘I want you to change all the locks on the house because this is my house,’” Benke said Wednesday.
Benke said the claim forced her to spend several thousand dollars to hire a lawyer. Though illegitimate, Scott’s filing could have clouded Benke’s title and prevented her from selling the house, Benke said.
“It was quite a headache. At first I thought it was a joke,” Benke said. “I had to actually hire a lawyer to go to the courthouse in front of a judge to say, ‘This is a scam.’”
Benke’s attorney, Richard Somach, said Scott’s claims had the potential to make life difficult for Benke and others. According to Lehigh County deed records, Scott filed similar affidavits against five other properties in Lehigh County, including a Turkey Hill and two Wawas in Allentown.
“It is an annoyance, if nothing else,” Somach said. “There’s no way to sanction her back, because do you see her having any money?”
In one 2015 federal court filing, Scott said her only income was from public assistance. In her lawsuits, she claimed she was indigent, which allows a plaintiff to avoid the fees usually tied to litigation.
In the armed siege, police said they were called at 12:45 p.m. to Pine Ridge for “five males with guns, smashing in the windows,” with office workers trapped inside. The arrest affidavit continues:
Employees were alerted when they saw two suspiciouslooking vehicles parked in the clubhouse parking lot. An employee began frantically locking office doors after realizing one of the vehicles belonged to Scott. Several employees later told investigators that Scott has been “harassing the community and claiming that the property the community is located on belongs to her.”
The employees heard banging, glass breaking and private security guard John Derbyshire shouting, “You’re hurting me, ” and “Put the gun down!” Police said several men forced their way into one of the rooms, handcuffing Derbyshire and taking his gun.
Police said several maintenance workers blocked the exit with their vehicles. State troopers arrived and took Scott and the others into custody. Derbyshire was not injured.
To investigators, Scott admitted that several of her crew members were armed, but said two of them were only carrying BB guns. She had pepper spray and a stun gun, but didn’t go into the building during the takeover, police said.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, The Morning Call sought comment from members of the Pine Ridge community, including from William White, the property manager and a witness to the occupation.
“Pine Ridge Strong,” White wrote back in a three-word emailed response.