Citizen Complaints Help Lead Tulsa Police To Amber Alert Suspect

Police say Sunday night's Amber Alert case could not have been solved so quickly without the help of several citizens, two provided valuable information before the kidnapping even happened.

It began with a Dollar General employee who made a phone call a few hours before the kidnapping. She became suspicious of a man buying multiple children's items, then, when the man went to pay, the clerk asked for a license and saw it had sex offender stamped across it.

Later, when the amber alert was issued, that call became critical to identifying Michael Slatton as a possible suspect.

5/5/2014 Related Story: Tulsa Police Cancel Amber Alert After Girl Found Safe

Police say the next helpful citizen was Randy Bean, a security guard at the Windsong Apartments. He questioned Slatton because residents said he was trying to sell children's books.

Police said Bean did a great job of noting many details about Slatton, including the color of the comforter he had, which became important later, as it matched what officers found in Slatton's car.

Bean said he was just doing his job.

"I'm glad the girl is home and safe. She's the real hero in this. She survived," Bean said.

Bean kicked Slatton off the property and police say that's when he went to the apartment complex just north and kidnapped the little girl.

Later that night, Shawn Scott, who works at a Sapulpa Whataburger, called police when, he said, a man pulled up acting drunk, asked weird questions, and was unable to afford a small soda.

The dispatcher realized it sounded like the Amber Alert suspect.

Police say when a deputy tried to arrest the man he fought, slipped out of handcuffs, rammed a squad car and dragged the deputy several feet before getting away.

It wasn't until later, that Scott realized it was Slatton.

"It's an uneasy feeling, but also a humbling feeling to know you helped catch someone," Scott said.

Officers said Slatton refused to stop, but was only going about 25 miles an hour. They threw out stop sticks causing him to run over a mailbox and he was then taken into custody.

The little girl's clothes were in his car, but she was not. Officers found her, naked, in a wooded area.

When Slatton was loaded into an ambulance, he flipped off the T.V. cameras and tried to hide his face.

Once the charges of molestation and injury to a child were added to Slatton's case, his bond was increased to $1.5 million.