Former Legislator Indicted Two Years After his Firing as CEO of Rural Electric Cooperative

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Two years after former Rep. Terry J. Matlock was fired as CEO of Choctaw Electric Cooperative in southeast Oklahoma, he was indicted by a multi-county grand jury on charges of embezzlement.

As OK Energy Today reported in September of 2015, Matlock came under investigation at the request of Gov. Mary Fallin. Matlock, a former Democrat in the State House of Representatives for 12 years, was fired for allegedly using cooperative funds to buy himself a $2 million retirement annuity. The governor asked Attorney General Scott Pruitt to begin the investigation because Matlock continued serving as a regent for the Regional University System of Oklahoma.

The probe resulted in an indictment on 11 counts of embezzlement and one count of engaging in a pattern of criminal offense. Matlock stands accused of using company resources and employees to perform personal work on his private property in Choctaw and McCurtain Counties. He faces up to 51 years in prison and fines totaling $77,000 for all counts combined.

Matlock remains as a regent, despite the Governor’s concerns about the allegations made against him last year.

“I have serious concerns about Mr. Matlock’s fitness for continued service as a Regent,” she wrote in her investigation request to Pruitt. “Oklahoma has a high standard for public service as reflected in the ability to impeach even our highest officials for any offense involving moral turpitude committed while in office.”

As a regent, Matlock covered the state’s largest four-year universities including East Central University, Northeastern State University, Northwestern State University, Southwestern Oklahoma State University, Southeastern Oklahoma State University and the University of Central Oklahoma and numerous satellite locations.

He was fired in October 2014 as CEO of the Choctaw Electric Cooperative that  has 18,000 customers and serves Choctaw, Pushmataha, McCurtain, Bryan, Le Flore and Atoka counties. At the time of his firing, Matlock was accused by some board members of using cooperative equipment on his property. There was a mass resignation of board members as cooperative members started a petition drive and gathered 2,000 signatures. Two months after Matlock was removed from office, board members Mike Bailey, Bob Hodge, Rodney Lovitt, Bbill McCain, Henry Baze, Bob Holley, Joe Brisco and Larry Johnson resigned from the board.