In the quiet rural landscape of McIntosh County, near Henryetta, Oklahoma, a grim discovery was made on August 4, 2016. Terry Alan Wetselline, a 42-year-old male, was found shot to death alongside 73-year-old Floyd Hathcoat at Hathcoat's residence on Tiger Mountain. The double homicide shocked the community and prompted an immediate investigation.
The search for the person responsible did not last long.
The following day, law enforcement officers located and arrested a suspect in the neighboring Cherokee County. The individual taken into custody was Christopher Hathcoat, the son of one of the victims, Floyd Hathcoat. The arrest came after Hathcoat was found driving one of the victim's trucks at a state park. A search of the vehicle uncovered a rifle and ammunition that would later be linked to the crime scene.
Christopher Hathcoat was subsequently charged with the murders of his father and Terry Wetselline. His legal journey took a complex turn. Initially tried and convicted in state court for Wetselline's murder, he was sentenced to life in prison. However, this conviction was later overturned due to a landmark Supreme Court ruling in McGirt v. Oklahoma, which addressed jurisdictional issues concerning crimes involving Native Americans in Indian Country. The case was then picked up by federal prosecutors. In a federal court, Hathcoat ultimately pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder in Indian Country. For his crimes, he was sentenced to 26 years in prison.
