Nearly four years after their arrests, the criminal case against Epic Charter Schools’ founders took a step forward Thursday.
Oklahoma County Special Judge Jason Glidewell concluded prosecutors presented enough evidence for nearly all of the charges against David Chaney, 47, and Ben Harris, 50, to move forward to trial.
Prosecutors in 2022 charged Chaney and Harris with 14 felonies each in connection with their roles managing the online school, alleging they diverted tens of millions of dollars meant for students’ education into their private companies. They are charged under the state’s racketeering statute with embezzlement, conspiracy and fraud.
The judge on Thursday dismissed one count of embezzlement against Chaney and Harris, as well as one count of computer fraud against Chaney. Probable cause exists for the remaining charges, Glidewell determined.
A formal arraignment is scheduled for June 24.
The judge also addressed Chaney and Harris’ key defense; their attorneys claimed the public funds became private once deposited into their business accounts. Glidewell said he didn’t find that persuasive. The money remains public, he said, until its purpose is fulfilled.
The state auditor, whose audit in 2020 triggered the criminal charges, called the scheme the largest abuse of taxpayer dollars in Oklahoma history.
Chaney and Harris deny wrongdoing.
Procedural delays have plagued the criminal case. Thursday’s hearing began more than two years ago, in 2024, but stalled after attorneys sought to remove the case’s trial judge. Multiple courts rejected the effort to remove the judge but she stepped down anyway.
Over eight days, the judge listened to testimony from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, Epic staff, state auditors and longtime chief financial officer Josh Brock, the state’s star witness. Brock is also charged in the multimillion-dollar embezzlement case, but is cooperating with prosecutors to avoid prison.
Brock managed the books of Epic Youth Services, the private management company, and served as encumbrance clerk for the school. He received a 10% cut of Epic Youth Services’ profits, while Chaney and Harris kept 45% each, Brock testified.
Prosecutors’ review of Epic’s bank accounts revealed the company collected more than $69.3 million in management fees between 2013 and 2021. Of that, the trio split $55 million: Harris made $25 million, Chaney made $23 million and Brock made $7 million.
The company also controlled Epic’s student learning fund, an account set aside for students’ laptops, extracurricular activities and other expenses. Investigators said Epic Youth Services kept unspent funds instead of returning the money to the school.
Brock described how the men used shell companies and submitted false invoices using estimates, rather than actual costs, to conceal their profits from the state. Prosecutors say they spent public money meant to educate students on political donations, expenses for a California charter school and Chaney and Brock’s personal credit card expenses.
A confidential, deep-dive investigation by the Internal Revenue Service is ongoing. Epic cut ties with Chaney, Harris and Brock in 2021.
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This story was originally published by Oklahoma Watch and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.