First-degree murder case: Rekart to be arraigned in July

An arraignment was set on Tuesday for Matthew Rekart, age 34 of Pocola, at the LeFlore County Courthouse. Rekart is charged with the first degree murder of Shayla Grant, who was in a relationship with his wife, then attempting to cover up the crime.

The District Court Arraignment is set for July 16.

The State of Oklahoma has endorsed more than 15 witnesses to testify.

According to the affidavit from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, the Pocola Police Department responded to an accident on George Avenue East within the city limits of Pocola on April 11, 2023. The crash had occurred about 97 feet East of State Highway 112.

When LeFlore County EMS arrived, they found an unresponsive female behind the wheel, Shayla Grant.

They began life-saving measures on her, but she was deceased.

It was noted that Grant’s vehicle had only sustained minor damage, which was inconsistent with the fatal injuries on her body. An SD card was taken from the dash camera found in the car. Grant’s phone was not with her.

The Pocola Police Department learned that Grant’s phone was being tracked from her family, and located the device at 704 Carter, which is an empty lot in Pocola. Police Officer found the phone, and noticed tire tracks in the grass.

Pocola Police Chief John Chaney reviewed the footage from the dash camera, which showed the vehicle crashing into a red pipe fence. Before the crash, the camera showed a white male, who was believed to be Rekart, walking around the vehicle while it was parked in the empty lot.

Prior to that, the camera showed that the car was at 3702 Love Street in Pocola for approximately 15 minutes. Rekart and his wife, Tiffany Rekart were residents at this address.

The Rekarts denied seeing Grant. On April 11, Grant’s vehicle airbag control module was searched and it was determined that the speed at the time of crash was 12 miles per hour, which was not enough to cause an injury, which is why the airbag was not deployed.

The data showed that there was also no pressure applied to the accelerator or brakes within five seconds before the crash.

OSBI agents reviewed the footage on the dash camera.

The camera showed Grant pulling into the driveway at 3702 Love Street, then the recording shopped.

When the video began again a few minutes later, it showed a man, believed to be Rekart, walking in front of the camera. The car was then driven into a driveway near State Highway 112 and parked facing a shed. Rekart then is seen carrying an unknown object and a cell phone. When he walked back from the shed, the items were no longer with him.

The vehicle was then driven toward State Highway 112. It came to a stop after leaving the road, colliding with a red pipe railing.

Ten minutes after the crash, an unread message was sent to Grant’s cell phone from Tiffany Rekart’s cell phone. The text read “That was fun but we can’t do this anymore.”

During a search of Grant’s phone, messages between who was believed to be Tiffany and Grant were found, and appeared to plan a sexual encounter. Grant was invited to come to 3702 Love Street.

Tiffany Rekart was interviewed in April 14, when she explained that she was in a romantic relationship with Grant.

She said that her husband had known about the relationship, but had believed it to be over.

Tiffany said that on March 31, she told Grant she was going to get a divorce.

Around April 4, she said Rekart took her phone and saw a text between her and Grant, and refused to give her the phone back.

From April 4 to April 7, Tiffany did not have her phone.

It was determined that Tiffany was picking up a grocery order at a Walmart in Fort Smith during the time-frame that Grant was killed.

Rekart was arrested on April 19, 2023, and pled not guilty a few days later on April 24.