Alvin Arely Potts II Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud Conspiracy

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA — Alvin Arely Potts II, 38, of Durant, Oklahoma, has pled guilty to a federal wire fraud conspiracy that spanned nearly three weeks in 2017, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma. The charge, Count Six of the indictment, carries a maximum prison sentence of 30 years and a fine of up to $1,000,000.

Potts admitted to conspiring with known and unknown individuals from May 23, 2017, through June 9, 2017, to obtain money and property through materially false pretenses. Federal prosecutors allege the scheme unfolded across the Eastern District of Oklahoma, exploiting financial systems and trust to line the pockets of those involved.

In a related but separate count, Bobby Joecephus Medina, 38, of Poteau, Oklahoma, pled guilty to uttering a counterfeit security with intent to deceive. On November 29, 2016, Medina possessed and passed a forged check—number 2698—purportedly issued by the Chickasaw Nation, Division of Commerce, drawn on a First United Bank account in Durant for $410.22.

The counterfeit check charge, brought under Title 18, U.S.C. §§ 513(a) and 2, exposes Medina to up to 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. Authorities say the deception was deliberate, aimed at defrauding a financial institution and undermining the integrity of tribal-issued instruments.

The case emerged from a sprawling, multi-agency investigation involving the Durant Police Department, District 19 District Attorney’s Office, Chickasaw Nation Tribal Police, Choctaw Nation Tribal Police, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the United States Secret Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Melody Nelson is prosecuting the case.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Kimberly E. West accepted both guilty pleas in federal court in Muskogee and ordered presentence investigation reports. U.S. Attorney Brian J. Kuester hailed the coordinated crackdown, calling it a textbook example of local, tribal, state, and federal forces uniting to dismantle financial crime in the region.