Grove attorney charged by multicounty grand jury

TULSA, Okla. (AP) – An Oklahoma attorney has been accused of racketeering, solicitation for murder and other charges by the state’s multicounty grand jury.

An indictment unsealed Monday accuses 54-year-old Winston Connor II of Grove of 10 charges involving his relationship with 36-year-old Slint Tate, a former client of Connor’s who is serving life in prison for first-degree murder.

Authorities previously wiretapped a phone that Tate smuggled into prison and allegedly used to communicate with Connor in May 2016. Shortly afterward, prosecutors filed charges against suspects in a multi-state drug ring operated from prison that allegedly netted sales of up to $1 million a week.

Connor was arrested Saturday in North Carolina. His attorney, Paul DeMuro, told the Tulsa World that Connor is innocent and that they will fight the charges “tooth and nail.”