Sheriff Charlie Morris Arrested for Theft, Fraud & other Charges

An emotional start to a Friday morning for the employees of Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office.Just before 9 o'clock they were informed their boss, Sheriff Charlie Morris, was behind bars.

"I don't know if i can do this Charlie Morris has been like a father to me and to say that we are hurt, to say that we are stunned to say that we are disappointed does not even begin to describe it," says Michele Nickelson the O.C.S.O. public information officer.

Federal agents arrested Morris in Las Vegas, Friday morning on theft, fraud, wire fraud, money laundering and conspiracy charges.

Around the same time, authorities in Shalimar arrested Morris' director of administration and finance, 50-year-old Theresa "Terry" Adams, escorting her out of her office.

The U.S. Attorney's Office says Morris and Adams were conducting a scheme to steal money from the sheriff's office payroll account, enlisting the help of unwitting employees. Several of those employees got suspicious and began working with local FBI agents.

Those agents say the scheme worked like this:

Adams or Morris or both, would tell the employee the sheriff's office charity account was out of money. They'd ask the employee to help them transfer money from the payroll account to the charity account, in the form of kick-backs.Those employees told federal agents they would receive thousands of dollars in bonuses, then give most or all of the money back to Adams as either cash or a cashier's check.
The say Morris never gave any of the money to charity, but pocketed it for his own use.

After Morris' arrest, Gov. Charlie Crist suspended him from office and appointed FDLE Agent Edward Spooner as the acting sheriff. Friday afternoon, Spooner reacted to the situation.

"It's a bad day for all of us I've known charlie Morris for 16 years..I've worked with him quite a bit....it's tough for all of us." But he refused to answer any questions about the investigation, like are there any more arrests pending.

"This involved a very small group of employees in the sheriff's office that is being investigated by the FBI."

If the allegations are true, the nagging question is why would Morris do it. Some claim Morris has a gambling problem.

"I don't know that he has a gambling problem I have no knowledge of that and it's an issue i will not discuss," says Spooner.

When asked why Morris was in Las Vegas, Spooner would only answer he was on vacation.
As for his stay at the sheriff's office, Spooner says he's only there for a short time.

"It's my understanding I'll be here for 4 to 6 or even 8 weeks to come in and keep the sheriff's office running the same and give the same service to the citizens, the members and the employees, but the agency is who will make the difference."

There is no word on who will step-up and permanently replace Morris, not only as sheriff, but also as the president of the Florida Sheriff's Association.

Morris is due in Federal Court in Las Vegas for a bond hearing.

He'll then be extradited back to the Pensacola where he'll face the charges.