A former Durant Police Lieutenant was booked into the Marshall County Jail to begin his 30-day sentence for Embezzlement. Billy Jones, a 48-year-old male from Durant, pleaded guilty to Embezzlement.
Assistant District Attorney Doug Elliot was assigned to the case and said they had overwhelming proof of Jones's guilt.
“We had plenty of proof in this case and there was really no reason to go to trial,” Elliot said in an interview with KXII.“The big thing is to get the money back to the people who had the money taken from them.”
Jones appeared in court on May 29 to negotiate his plea bargain. The case began in May 2022 when the police discovered financial discrepancies. They filed charges in July 2023 when Jones was originally charged with Embezzlement.Jonesretired from the department three months before the investigation started.
Law officials said that Jones embezzled money over a four-year period while employed by the Durant Police Department.
Elliot told KXII that even though they aren’t sure where the money went, they have an idea. They believe he used the money at Choctaw Casino. Videos show that Jones pulled the money from an ATM near the casino.
“The withdrawals were in close proximity to the casino on numerous occasions and the playtime that the casino showed was close in time,” Elliot told News 12.
Jones was accused of embezzling $67,000 from money seized while he was a narcotics officer with the Durant Police Department. He was entrusted to transfer that money to the Bryan County treasurer. He also pleaded guilty of embezzling over $37,000 from the local Fraternal Order of Police.
Jones received a sevenyear deferred sentence due to his plea bargain. This means he will not go to prison. He will only serve 30 days in the county jail, be on probation and pay back over $100,000 in restitution.
Elliot said that once he serves his sentence, he will not be able to be in Oklahoma law enforcement.
“He had to give up his CLEET certification, that was his law enforcement certification that had to be surrendered as part of the plea bargain also,” Elliot said.