Roberts Says Stipe Paid Him To Stay Away

By Tony Thornton/The Oklahoman ~ Former congressional candidate Walt Roberts testified Monday that his political mentor, Gene Stipe, paid him $3,500 a month to stay in California while the Federal Election Commission investigated an illegal contribution scheme involving Roberts' 1998 campaign.

The arrangement lasted for a year, Roberts said.

At the time, Stipe was a powerful state senator from McAlester and the longest-tenured legislator in Oklahoma history. He stood to lose his political career, and possibly his freedom, if Roberts cooperated with the investigation.

Instead, the auctioneer and sculptor quietly moved to California and worked on his artwork shortly after losing the 1998 general election to Wes Watkins, the incumbent Republican.

Read all of Thornton's report at www.newsok.com.

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