June 30, 2020
By News Director Jared Atha
Formal charges have been handed out to two suspects who allegedly attempted to introduce contraband into North Fork Correctional Center in Sayre.
28-year-old Hershell Eugene Anderson of Oklahoma City and 37-year-old Craig Allen Coile of Pryor were both apprehended on June 10 when Beckham County Sheriff’s Office personnel responded to a pursuit that resulted when a Department of Corrections investigator attempted to stop the two men that appeared to be trying to get packages over the fence at the prison.
The DOC investigator chased the vehicle at speeds of up to 100 mph, eventually losing sight of the vehicle on a county road northwest of Elk City.
Sheriff Derek Manning says his personnel located the vehicle a few moments later just about a mile from where the investigator lost sight of it, and continued the pursuit.
Manning said the car pulled over to the shoulder about a half mile away when it saw a Sheriff’s Office patrol truck.
Manning said the driver was arrested a few minutes later by a deputy who had driven to the other side of the field to head him off.
Manning said deputies impounded the vehicle, which had packages inside that are commonly used to throw contraband over the fence at the prison. He said detectives and deputies will be working with the Office of the Inspector General at DOC to try and determine who the bundles were intended for.
Manning said the pursuit itself reached felony levels when the fleeing vehicle almost struck at least two other motorists at intersections during the pursuit.
Coile was charged with conspiracy, and two counts of unlawful possession of a controlled drug with the intent to distribute. Coile first court date is scheduled for July 13.
Anderson was charged with conspiracy, eluding or attempting to elude a police officer, and two counts of unlawful possession of a controlled drug with the intent to distribute. His next court date is scheduled for July 27.
