Local & Regional

A pastor in Inola has been arrested following allegations of sexual assault by three children.

Roy Shoop, 55, pastor of the Cowboy Gatherin' Church, was taken into custody by Rogers County Sheriff's deputies Wednesday. 

Rogers County Sheriff Scott Walton said his investigation began with an allegation sent to his office by the Mayes County Sheriff's Office, and eventually uncovered three children claiming that Shoop molested or raped them in his home. 

The Oklahoma State Department of Health on Thursday reported 148 new cases of COVID-19 and five new deaths.

The jump in cases was the second-largest single-day increase this month behind 151 new cases reported May 16. Oklahoma now has 5,680 confirmed cases of the illness.

The five deaths reported Thursday included five adults 65 or older and one one man between 50 and 64 years old. One death was in the past 24 hours; the rest happened between May 14 and Tuesday.

Catoosa High School seniors will be some of the first Tulsa-area students to be graduating via a traditional, in-person commencement ceremony since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

In a letter to the school community sent on Wednesday, Catoosa High Principal Josh Brown confirmed that the ceremony would take place at the school's football stadium on Thursday evening (or this weekend, if weather forces a postponement). 

Salvation Army Tulsa will open its summer camps June 1, prioritizing spots for essential workers and past clients.

Salvation Army Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Tulsa Executive Director Richard White said with several other organizations deciding not to hold camps amid the COVID-19 pandemic, they know there’s a growing need for child care with school out and Oklahoma reopening.

Tulsa's tourist industry is hoping a major event recently booked for Expo Square in July could be the start of the economy's revivial. 

The week-long National Junior Angus Show will bring thousands of visitors and $2.5 million to Tulsa, according to Ray Hoyt, president of Tulsa Regional Tourism.

"We're excited about the whole opportunity to kickstart the tourism aspect of what's going on in the community," Hoyt said.

Responding to complaints from Oklahomans across the state who say they're struggling to receive unemployment benefits during the coronavirus pandemic, a state cabinet secretary said Tuesday that many issues and delays are being caused by the applicants themselves.

"The biggest issue that we've seen that's causing people to get - either they get paid one week and then it stalls, or they stall completely, are inconsistencies or incomplete information," said David Ostrowe, Governor Kevin Stitt's Secretary of Digital Transformation and Administration. 

The Oklahoma State Department of Health reported on Wednesday five new deaths from COVID-19 and 43 new confirmed cases of the illness.

The deaths occurred between April 22 and Monday, with two in Tulsa County, two in Oklahoma County and one in Cleveland County. All were adults 65 or older.

Oklahoma, Tulsa and Cleveland counties lead the state in COVID-19 deaths with 51, 39 and 37. Since March 18, 299 Oklahomans have died.

The health department reported 43 new coronavirus infections, bringing the state's total to 5,532.

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — An Oklahoma police officer is under investigation after responding to a departmental email about coronavirus protective masks that were issued by sending images of people with white bags over their faces carrying torches, reminiscent of lynchings of blacks by the Ku Klux Klan, his police chief said Tuesday.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed into law on Tuesday legislation to prevent local municipalities from implementing so-called red flag laws.

Such laws allow judges to order the confiscation of firearms when a person may be a danger to themselves or others.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — State corrections officials are helping a southern Oklahoma county battle an outbreak of COVID-19 in the county’s jail, the Oklahoma Department of Corrections said Tuesday.

In a statement, department officials said 12 of their security experts have been dispatched to the Comanche County Detention Center in Lawton to help the county grapple with its outbreak of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

A free webinar series beginning Wednesday aims to help Oklahoma teachers craft curricula and lesson plans for effectively teaching the history of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.

Dr. Karlos Hill, chair of the Clara Luper Department of African and African American Studies at the University of Oklahoma and the head of the Tulsa Race Massacre Institute, said that while the pandemic dashed plans for a third-annual, in-person program in Tulsa's Greenwood District, the limitation of moving programming online may also be an opportunity.

A 17-year veteran of the Tulsa Fire Department has been arrested in connection with two bank robberies.

Police in Skiatook said they arrested Jerry Ray Brown Monday evening on charges of second degree robbery and possession of stolen property. They allege that he was the suspect in a March 12th robbery at the Oklahoma Capitol Bank in that city.

Sperry police say they suspect Brown of also being the culprit in the robbery of an Exchange Bank branch there on May 7th, and that they will pursue separate charges.

The Oklahoma State Department of Health reported on Tuesday 91 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the state's total to 5,489.

The illness has now killed 294 Oklahomans after six additional deaths were confirmed Tuesday. All were adults age 65 or older who died between May 4 and Sunday.

Since the outbreak started, 897 people have been hospitalized, with 167 currently in the hospital.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Dozens of people rallied at the state Capitol on Monday, complaining that their state unemployment claims aren’t being processed.

Most of those who gathered on the Capitol’s south steps were self-employed and complained of glitches with the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission’s website, waiting on hold for hours to talk to an agent and not getting promised call backs.

Seeking to mark out a middle ground between unmitigated spread of the coronavirus and an overzealous public health response, Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) said he believes that measures like social distancing and wearing masks have been effective across the country because of—not despite—their being optional.

Saying they couldn't safely host their typical 50,000+ campers safely amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Oklahoma Baptists announced Monday that their Falls Creek Youth Camp would be canceled for the 2020 summer season.

"With a heavy heart, and after extensive consultation with pastors, lay leaders and information from public health officials, we have made the difficult decision to cancel," said Hance Dilbeck, Oklahoma Baptists' executive director-treasurer, in a statement.

The Oklahoma State Department of Health reported 88 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, bringing the state's total number of cases to 5,398.

No new deaths were reported Monday.

The health department reported 25 additional patients as having recovered from the illness, meaning they did not die, are not currently hospitalized and it has been at least 14 days since they tested positive for the illness. Symptoms, however, can reportedly linger for several weeks.

Oklahoma may be among the targets of a Nigerian crime ring perpetrating 'massive' unemployment fraud against U.S. state programs.