Kathy Hale
(PCSD file photo)
By Patti Weaver
STILLWATER — A 73-year-old grandmother has avoided an April 27 jury trial by accepting a plea bargain for 15 years’ probation for trafficking fentanyl at her camper trailer in the Timberline RV Park between Cushing and Drumright on 9th Street, where she also possessed methamphetamine with intent to distribute.
Kathy Anne Hale, who has a history of drug convictions and has been known by the surname of Vassar, was sentenced on April 10 by District Judge Jason Reese, who gave her a concurrent seven years’ probation on her methamphetamine charge and a concurrent one year of probation for possessing drug paraphernalia.
The judge also ordered Hale, who had pleaded guilty to all three counts, to comply with the methamphetamine registry, undergo random drug tests, and pay $1,800 in assessments along with court costs.
Payne County Sheriff’s Investigator Brandon Myers had served a search warrant at 8:42 am on June 19, 2024, at Hale’s fifth wheel-style camper trailer where he was greeted by Hale and her grandson, Garrett Lee Scott, then 29, court records show.
The investigator alleged in an affidavit, “She told me there was methamphetamine in the lockbox, and she had pills in her purse. She told me she has a prescription for oxycodone, but the oxycodone pills that are in her purse are not the pills she received from her prescription. She told me she recently purchased the pills for $400. She told me that she sells pills and methamphetamine.
“I located the lockbox, which is disguised as a book. I located the keys to the box in Kathy’s purse. Inside the lockbox were small spoons, baggies, and a bag containing a crystal substance that tested presumptive positive for methamphetamine. I located another lockbox disguised as a book that was locked but had a three-number combination. The box was full of baggies.
“The pills found in Kathy’s purse were in a silver and clear zip-lock-style bag with 55 round pink pills with the stamped inscription of K 56. There was one round yellow pill stamped with a design on one side and 230 on the other,” identified as containing 325 mg of acetaminophen and 10 mg of oxycodone hydrochloride. The pink pills appear to be counterfeit based on inconsistent stamping on the pills, which tested positive for fentanyl.
“In the area distinguished as Garrett’s, on top of the dresser I located a clear bag containing a crystal substance, a credit card in the name of Garrett Scott with a powder residue on the card, and a straw next to the card. Also, in the dresser and couch area, I located numerous electronic devices and computers that, in my training and experience, appear to be used for skimming credit card information.
“I requested and was granted an additional search warrant that covered items used in and or related to the crimes of identity theft and debit/credit card theft and counterfeiting. I located numerous antennas and hand-held devices commonly used to steal credit card information from devices installed at credit card machines such as gas pumps or card readers, inside stores. I found on top of the dresser a Flipper Zero, a handheld device designed to hack digital devices such as radio protocols, access control systems and other hardware.
“I found additional chip and magnet-stripped unmarked credit cards in the same area. It appeared that these devices, although legal to possess, were being used to illegally obtain credit card information and use the stolen information to clone the blank cards that were found. Additionally, several laptop computers above the couch where Garrett was sleeping appeared to be used in conjunction with the electronic devices already seized.”
Less than four months later, on Oct. 1, 2024, Garrett Scott pleaded guilty to possessing a credit/debit card skimming device, as well as methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia, for which he was placed on probation for five years under a deferred sentence as part of an agreement with the prosecution, court records show.
Scott was ordered to comply with the methamphetamine registry, undergo random drug tests, enroll in WorkForce, perform 54 hours of community service and pay $1,100 in assessments along with court costs.
