Senior personnel at the Calista Regional Native Corporation are accusing each other of misconduct, and it’s not clear who’s telling the truth.
Calista’s Board of Directors claims that its former Chairman, Colonel Wayne Don, violated the Board’s code of conduct and is now spreading misinformation about the company. Sam Fortier, Don’s attorney, says that his client has done nothing wrong, and that he has the documents to prove it.
Here’s one thing we know for sure: in 2017, long before former chairman Wayne Don was accused of anything, the Calista Corporation launched an investigation into one of its employees. The unnamed employee was accused of repeatedly sexually harassing a woman who worked at a potential Calista vendor. Calista’s Human Resources Department got involved, and the unnamed employee was fired.
According to Wayne Don's attorney, Sam Fortier, Calista CEO Andrew Guy found out about these sexual harassment allegations weeks before Calista’s HR Department did. He says that the woman had complained to Guy about it directly, but that Guy did nothing.
Calista’s Board of Directors has strongly denied this. In a press release last week, the board wrote that the woman had never made a single complaint about sexual harassment to Calista’s CEO. "The person that was harassed did not approach Andrew Guy," said Calista Communications Manager Thom Leonard.
The press release went on to accuse Wayne Don of making “defamatory” and “misleading” statements about Calista. In an interview with KYUK last weekend, Fortier said that he and Don are sticking by what they’ve said.
"Calista has publicly accused Mr. Don and his attorney of defamation in both statements," said Fortier. "The truth, though, is an absolute defense, and we have spoken the truth."
Fortier says that yes, CEO Andrew Guy certainly knew about the sexual harassment allegations against the unnamed Calista employee; the woman complained to Guy about it. Fortier says that while she might not have used the exact words, “I’ve been sexually harassed,” she did tell Andrew Guy details.
"She did state that she'd received over 1100 text messages in a 45 day period," Fortier said. "Do the math. That's 24 texts a day. She received a six-page love letter, a box of Victoria's Secret lingerie." Fortier also said that the unnamed employee had visited the woman’s house, even when she told him not to come over. "She told the President and CEO that it was a horrible experience," he said.
How does Fortier say he knows this? There are notes from that conversation. "And they were made by Mr. Guy," Fortier said. "He didn't disclose those notes for over two months."
Fortier says that he has a copy of CEO Andrew Guy’s notes from that conversation. They were included in a 200-page report that the corporation issued following its investigation into the sexual harassment committed by the unnamed employee. The report also includes exhibits, and a copy of the six-page love letter that the woman received. Fortier added that certain records show that the unnamed Calista employee had sexually harassed women before, and that Andrew Guy may have known about it.
According to Fortier, Don tried to address his concerns about CEO Andrew Guy’s failure to respond to these harassment allegations. Calista’s Board of Directors is now accusing him of threatening Calista’s CEO, interfering with an internal investigation, and other misconduct. Fortier denied those allegations on his client's behalf. He stressed that Don did not investigate the CEO’s alleged behavior himself and was periodically acting under the advice of Calista’s own counsel.
Calista has a history of retaliating against employees, said Fortier, and he says that he has the records to prove it.
Calista Communications Manager Thom Leonard and CEO Andrew Guy did not respond to KYUK's requests for comment.