Third ex-official in Tryon sentenced in embezzlement

CHANDLER – The last of three former town officials in Tryon accused collectively of looting more than $90,000 from the small Lincoln County community entered a plea last week that concluded a criminal case filed 17 months ago.

Legislators explore reasons for workforce shortages

OKLAHOMA CITY – Post-pandemic workforce shortages continue in Oklahoma. The Senate Business and Commerce Committee held an interim study recently to determine why that’s happening and what’s needed to get Oklahomans back in the job market.

EDC helps Chickasha move forward

CHICKASHA – The principal mission of the Economic Development Council is to “shine a positive light on Chickasha,” Director Jim Cowan told the City Council recently. As an illustration, a variety of new businesses were launched in Chickasha “in the past year,” he related.

Kicked out of drug court and sentenced to prison

FREDERICK – A woman who was allowed to enroll in a drug court program after pleading guilty to narcotics charges in two southwest Oklahoma counties was subsequently sent to prison for repeated violations of her drug court contract over a 19-month period.

Tuttle couple admit guilt in $88M fraud scheme

OKLAHOMA CITY – A computer system administrator and his spouse pleaded guilty in federal court here to participating in a massive international scheme to make millions of dollars by selling pirated business telephone system software licenses.

Chickasha Police Department upgrades its fleet

CHICKASHA – The City Council authorized Police Chief Goebel Music on Oct. 2 to buy another police patrol vehicle, the second such purchase in six weeks. The Chickasha Police Department will acquire a 2021 Dodge Durango Pursuit all-wheel-drive vehicle from the Kansas Highway Patrol.

Bankruptcy filings in August increased 18% Y-O-Y; filings in Oklahoma in first 8 months up nearly 21%

OKLAHOMA CITY – There were 634 commercial Chapter 11 filings registered across the nation in August 2023, an increase of 54% from filings registered in August 2022, according to data provided by Epiq Bankruptcy, the provider of U.S. bankruptcy filing data.

FISTA approves lease with r4 Technologies

LAWTON – FISTA’s newest tenant will not move into the FISTA Innovation Park, located on the west side of Central Plaza, but will find its own space elsewhere in the former mall.

Committee finalizes list of road projects

LAWTON – Lawton’s Streets and Bridges Council Committee has identified 10 street projects for the city to move to the top of its to-do list. The committee, which is made up of Lawton City Councilmen George Gill, Allan Hampton and Kelly Harris, finalized its list during an Oct.

Lawton opens new center to help sexual assault victims

Lawton’s new SANE (Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner) Exam Center opened earlier this month. The project was 18 months in the making and was made possible through the work of the HELP Advocacy Center Team, comprised of several community, county and city partners, city officials said in a news release.