Eric Tataw owns a tucked away house on a Gaithersburg, Maryland, cul-de-sac where neighbors complained he’d hosted large pool parties for hundreds of people. In June, Tataw said he knew the law, wasn’t breaking it and wasn’t planning on stopping the gatherings, which he called part of his Cameroonian culture.
“I will never, ever stop the parties so long as I am not doing anything illegal,” he told News4’s Walter Morris.
The parties were infuriating to his neighbors, who complained about lewd behavior and so much traffic it was difficult to get to their homes.
But once the News4 I-Team dug into Tataw’s background, there was more to the story than just the parties.
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“We're not here about the parties,” the I-Team’s Ted Oberg told Tataw as he emerged from the home on a recent afternoon. “We're here about the federal indictment and the activities in Cameroon.”
“Oh,” Tataw replied.
Tataw may not be well known past his Gaithersburg cul-de-sac, but in his home country of Cameroon in West Africa, Tataw is a leader, advocate and supporter of a long-simmering, sometimes violent separatist fight to break off English speaking portions of the country.
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In frequent online videos, Tataw has called himself “a key factor in this revolution.” In others he boasts he has no fear of being well known for his views. "Quote me anywhere. My name is Eric Tataw," he told viewers in a video posted on news site Downtown Info.
Tataw told the I-Team he is a journalist and an advocate. In past videos the I-Team uncovered online, Tataw discussed kidnappings and blockading Cameroonian government leaders in their homes. “I will have my men at your houses, and you may not be able to leave,” he warned Cameroonian government officials in one video.
In others, fellow Cameroonians accused him of supporting amputations of opponents' limbs. That’s a claim he denies or at least distances himself from.
When asked about the claims of violence, Tataw told the I-Team, “What I think is important is to look at where, at a point, somebody makes contrition and makes a positive shift. That's what life is about.”
It is likely he hasn’t been back to Cameroon for years despite his ongoing support for the separatist movement.
“I’ll be killed," he told the I-Team. "I’ll be killed (if I return to Cameroon).”
“Because you have been active in the fight against the government there for more than a decade?” Oberg asked him.
“I agree. Yes, I’ve been active,” Tataw replied.
At least some of his neighbors are worried by Tataw’s outside-the-cul-de-sac activism. “It is alarming. It is of a concern,” said Jung Lee, who lives right next door.
But the I-Team found there’s another reason Tataw might not be traveling. He is facing a multicount indictment alleging bank fraud, wire fraud, ID theft, money laundering and obstruction of justice. He had to surrender his passport and is restricted to Maryland.
Tataw pleaded not guilty, but in an indictment, federal prosecutors allege he lied to get $163,000 from the COVID-era Paycheck Protection Program and then intimidated witnesses during the investigation.
“Anything related to the further indictment, only my lawyer can talk,” Tataw told the I-Team when asked about the charges. His lawyer hasn’t called back or replied to News4’s detailed emails. If he does, News4 will update this article.
An affidavit seeking a warrant for Tataw's arrest filed in federal court says he "instructed (a witness) how to respond if the grand jury asked if Tataw has an army, about Tataw’s role in the Cameroonian separatist movement or about various kidnappings and acts of violence in Cameroon."
Oberg asked Tataw, “Why would you talk to someone about how to answer questions about that?”
“Well, you see,” Tataw replied, “I'm a law-abiding citizen and I have absolute respect for the laws of this country. And if I have a gag order by the judge not to discuss my further indictment, I will not say it anywhere.”
There is no gag order in the case. When reminded of that, Tataw told the I-Team he just wanted his lawyer to talk about the case. The lawyer has not spoken to the I-Team, and federal investigators aren’t saying anything to the I Team, either.
Court records show if Tataw is found guilty of the charges, a judge could force him to forfeit the home used for the pool parties to pay back some of the loan.
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