Suspect sentenced in 2023 LeFlore County homicide
POCOLA, Okla. (KFOR) - According to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, the suspect in a 2023 homicide in LeFlore County has been sentenced.
Officials say the Pocola Police Department requested the OSBI's help with a suspicious death investigation on April 11, 2023.
On April 6, 2023, officers responded to a single vehicle crash near East George Street, between Carter and South Pocola Boulevard. The victim, 26-year-old Shayla Grant, was found at the scene. Emergency crews performed life-saving measures, but she later passed away.
Grant's cause of death was determined to be multiple blunt force trauma and skull fractures. OSBI special agents began investigating and identified 35-year-old Matthew Rekart as the suspect.
According to the OSBI, Rekart was arrested on April 19, 2023, and booked into the LeFlore County Jail on charges of First Degree Murder. He initially entered a plea of not guilty, but later pled guilty to Second Degree Murder.
On Wednesday, March 26, Rekart was sentenced to 45 years in the Oklahoma Department of Corrections. The terms of his sentence say the first 30 years will be served in custody with the remaining 15 years suspended.