Oklahoma sheriff accused of taking bribes, claims charges constitute election interference

McALESTER — Pittsburg County Sheriff Chris Morris was accused twice Friday of receiving a bribe.

The Republican, who is running for re-election, denies any wrongdoing.

Morris was first charged May 14 in Pittsburg County District Court with embezzlement of state property. A special prosecutor on Friday added a bribery count to the existing case and filed another bribery count as a new case.

Pittsburg County commissioners requested his dismissal. A jury trial on their request is scheduled for July. A judge will decide next Thursday whether he will be suspended by then.

The sheriff complained that commissioners requested his dismissal after hearing only one side of the story.

“I have done nothing wrong and am focused on winning the June 18 election and having my day in court,” he wrote in a statement on Facebook.

The charges billed earlier this month came from the purchase of a utility vehicle.

He was charged May 14 in the embezzlement case with illegally arranging for the sheriff's office to purchase a damaged utility vehicle (UTV) he owned so it could get a new one for himself -even.

The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation began investigating the $31,099 purchase after the county clerk became suspicious.

He was charged Friday with an additional bribery count of allowing an accessory, a lift kit, to be installed at a discount on the UTV while he still owned it.

The special prosecutor alleged that the sheriff asked Advantage Truck and Auto to charge the county more for new bed covers for the hail-damaged sheriff's vehicles in exchange for the personal discount.

He was charged Friday in a new corruption case with agreeing to repair his hail-damaged Toyota 4Runner for free. The special prosecutor claimed he promised in exchange to use McAlester Auto Collision in the future to repair sheriff's vehicles.

Morris, 50, of McAlester, was first elected in 2016 as sheriff of Pittsburg County, located in southeastern Oklahoma. He was a Democrat in his first run, but was re-elected as a Republican in 2020. He will be re-elected if he wins the GOP primary election in June.

“Election interference is not only happening in our great country, but also right here in Pittsburg County, Oklahoma,” Morris said after being indicted on May 14. “This was an orchestrated event, planned to make me look bad just weeks before the vote. election. The truth will come out. It is paramount that you maintain a strong sheriff with proven leadership for our county. »

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma sheriff accused of corruption as primary election approaches