Tulsa Police Arrest Suspects In Walgreens Robbery

Three people accused of robbing a half dozen Walgreens in the past month, were arrested on Tuesday. Officers arrested a man and two sisters.

Police got them just a couple hours after the most recent robbery Tuesday morning.

Operation "Scooby Doo" has involved lots of officers putting in hundreds of hours, working 17-hour days. Officers were sitting and watching Walgreens stores night after night; and Tuesday, it all paid off.

Police officers said 26-year-old Jason Bruner was still wearing the same pajama pants, which he wore during the robbery of the Walgreens at 15 and Lewis, when he was arrested outside his house later on Tuesday.

Detectives got a search warrant to look in the house for evidence of the crimes.

Officers say they worked hard to figure out who the suspected robbers were, and after that, it became a matter of catching them, then collecting the evidence needed to make a case for court.

Sergeant Brandon Watkins of the Tulsa Police Robbery Division, said, "We need more than eye witnesses. We want to build an air tight case and that takes time, and we find that just as frustrating as the public that wants them caught."

Officers also arrested Ashley McAnelly.

They say the three suspects took turns going into the stores, generally with a note demanding pain killers and implying they had a gun.

They call it a criminal merry-go-round.

They say her sister, Deidre McAnelly, was the final member of the three person crew.

Officers say it's too early to know if they were stealing the drugs for their own use, or to sell on the streets. But they did say it's unusual for three people with no criminal record to jump straight to a crime like robbery.

"I believe these people are about as clean as you get, no priors on anything," Watkins said.

He said the operation was a huge team effort by lots of people on the force; from the chief, to detectives, to street officers, to the fugitive guys. They say that's what it takes sometimes to solve the case, and they'll all breathe a little easier.

"This is a great feeling and I can go back to sleeping at night," said Watkins.

Watkins said it's possible the three suspects could face federal charges for the crimes. Police called it operation, "Scooby Doo," because Scooby and his Mystery Gang often solved robbery cases.