New Indictment Against Rogers County Commissioner

The 15th multicounty grand jury returned an accusation for removal for Rogers County Commissioner Mike Helm, according to Attorney General Scott Pruitt.

The accusation for removal also requests the district court to order the immediate suspension of Helm from his duties as Rogers County commissioner pending trial.

The multicounty grand jury on Thursday also issued two indictments against Helm. The indictments are one count of embezzlement exceeding $1,000 and one count of embezzlement exceeding $500.

In a news release, Pruitt said those indictments accuse Helm of selling a county pickup truck and never turning over the proceeds to Rogers County.

If convicted of these new charges, Helm faces up to five years in prison and a fine up to $5,000 for the first count and up to one year in prison and a fine up to $5,000 for the second.

The grand jury indicted Helm in July on one count of conspiracy and one count of embezzlement exceeding $1,000 for allegedly selecting a private contractor to perform highway improvements without going through the public bidding process, and for selling scrap metal belonging to the county but failing to deposit the cash into county accounts. 

Helm said at the time he would not resign.

7/27/2015: Related Story: Rogers County Commissioner Refuses To Resign After Indictment

The state’s multicounty grand jury began looking into allegations of wrongdoing by Rogers County officials in 2013 after thousands of citizens of the county signed a petition asking for an investigation. 

The multicounty grand jury has jurisdiction to investigate in all 77 counties, assisting local law enforcement as well as handling matters of state interest. The grand jurors meet regularly to hear testimony. The proceedings are closed to the public.