Oklahoma mayor's husband dresses as Klansman for Halloween

By Heide Brandes

OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - The mayor of a small northern Oklahoma town said she was not involved with a group of people including her husband caught on camera dressed as Ku Klux Klan members with robes and a hood on Halloween, authorities have said.

Theresa Sharp, the mayor of Lahoma, a town of about 600 residents 70 miles northwest of Oklahoma City, could not be reached immediately for comment on Monday about the Saturday incident reported by Garfield County sheriff's deputies.

She told Oklahoma City television station KOCO she was sorry for the incident, which happened on her property, and the "stupidity" of four individuals did not reflect the community.

According to a sheriff's office report, deputies were called to a Lahoma property after a citizen complaint. A picture of the group circulated on social media showing at least two people wearing robes and hoods, torches, a bonfire and a cross.

"I advised the group why I was there, and that although I know it was a joke that they save them and myself anymore headaches to not burn any more crosses," Deputy Aaron Moore said in the report.

Sharp's husband, Cary Sharp, 47, told deputies he thought the costume would make a good prank, the report said.

Cary Sharp, who could not be reached for comment on Monday, apologized in an interview on KOCO. "I am embarrassed. I've shamed my family and friends and I apologize for that," he said.

Garfield County officials said no laws were broken and no charges filed. The cross was never burned, authorities said.

(Reporting by Heide Brandes; Editing by David Bailey and Cynthia Osterman)