Muskogee County Sheriff's Office

Muskogee County Sheriff's Office is the chief law enforcement agency in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, with primary jurisdiction in the unincorporated areas of the county. Consisting of sheriff's deputies, detention staff and support personnel, the department serves a population of over 70,000 people.

Civil Forfeiture
On February 27, 2016, Muskogee County sheriff's deputies pulled over Eh Wah on U.S. Route 69 due to a broken tail light. Eh Wah, a naturalized U.S. citizen, was carrying cash proceeds from a fundraiser for a Christian band. However, miscommunication during questioning raised suspicions among the officers. Deputies brought out a drug-sniffing dog that gave a positive alert, but did not find any drugs during the search that followed. The deputies instead found and seized $53,249 in cash, citing the "possession of drug proceeds"; the money however was going towards a Christian liberal arts college and an orphanage in Thailand. Although Eh Wah was not immediately charged at the scene, a warrant for his arrest was issued on April 5 for acquiring "proceeds from drug activity," citing the alert from the drug-sniffing dog, "inconsistent stories," and the inability to "confirm the money was his" as probable cause. Following national coverage of the incident in the Washington Post, the charges were dropped and the district attorney stated that a check would be issued to refund the full amount confiscated.

Fallen Deputies
Since the establishment of the Muskogee County Sheriff's Office, two deputies have died in the line of duty.