Sequoyah County Sheriff Johnny Philpot confirmed Wednesday that the FBI executed the search warrant at Couch's home north of Vian. He said the FBI requested assistance from Philpot's office, requesting marked units and uniformed deputies to be on the scene.
"They didn't get involved in the actual search," Philpot said of his deputies.
Philpot speculated that the search may be related to the embezzlement charge against Couch, meaning Couch could be facing federal charges in relation to the allegations. He said he was told that the FBI took various items from Couch's home, along with farm equipment that was located on the property.
He emphasized that the FBI was not there to serve an arrest warrant, just a search warrant.
Couch was charged in August in district court with embezzlement of public funds. He is accused of taking $100,000 in school funds for a personal land purchase. The embezzlement charge prompted Department of Education officials to scrutinize school records and ultimately led to the revocation of Couch's credentials.
Couch has since filed an appeal, asking the district court to intercede.
An ongoing audit has since uncovered $500,000 in questionable expenditures at the school, audit officials have said.
Terri Watkins, spokesperson for the state auditor's office, said last week that the audit report is not yet complete.
A preliminary hearing set in December in the case was postponed as officials await the results of that audit.
Your TIMES was unable to reach an official at the FBI's Oklahoma City office for comment about the recent search.
