ARDMORE — Carter County Sheriff Milton Anthony could face prison time if he is convicted of bribing an employee — a woman nearly 40 years his junior — into having a sexual relationship with him in exchange for hiring her husband as a deputy.

The deal didn't last, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigations agents said, and the district attorney's office became involved after Anthony threatened to demote Kelli Denney, 26, if she didn't continue the relationship.

According to court records, Anthony was arrested Thursday but has not been formally charged. He has since posted a $20,000 bond and been released from his own jail.

The alleged sexual relationship between the sheriff and Denney began in July 2015, about the time the woman's husband applied to be a Carter County deputy, court records show.