Donors don't change course

A criminal investigation hasn't impaired state Auditor and Inspector Jeff McMahan's ability to raise money.

McMahan collected more than $11,000 between July and September for his 2006 re-election campaign, according to his most recent quarterly report to the state Ethics Commission.

That campaign ended more than a year ago when voters returned McMahan for a second, four-year term.

None of the contributions came after late August, when the FBI visited McMahan's office and served a search warrant on his Tecumseh home.

McMahan said all of the $11,185 he collected was related to a July 20 golf tournament at FireLake Golf Course in Shawnee.

Of the total collected, $6,000 went toward repayment of an unspecified loan, his Ethics Commission filing shows.

McMahan said he applied the $6,000 toward the $10,000 personal loan he took out for the campaign. The remaining $4,000 balance left him with $16,500 in loans owed to four people. The total debt also includes $5,000 each to Richard Gilbert and Dustie Butner, both of Tecumseh, and $2,500 to Terry O'Rorke, also of Tecumseh, according to his campaign report.

McMahan said he couldn't explain why he repaid his personal loan first instead of his other creditors.

"The bank sent me a letter requesting payments. But I intend to pay my debts,” he said.

Trips lead to inquiry

McMahan is under investigation by a federal grand jury and the Ethics Commission.

Both investigations concern his relationship with southeastern Oklahoma businessman Steve Phipps, who until recently co-owned several abstract companies.

Phipps pleaded guilty in June to a federal conspiracy charge and is cooperating with prosecutors. He admitted paying kickbacks to three former legislators who obtained state money for two of his businesses, a dog food plant and a gambling machine company, both in McAlester.

After previously saying he hardly knew Phipps, McMahan admitted in March that he went on three trips with him. Phipps paid for two of them: a guided, one-day bass-fishing trip at Lake Texoma in 2002, and a bus trip to a casino hotel in Biloxi, Miss.

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