Nowata Police Arrest 3 Suspects Thanks To A Lift From Firefighters

Nowata Police Officers go to new heights to catch three people suspected of breaking into a store and stealing merchandise. Police say the arrest would’ve been a lot tougher without a 30 foot assist from Nowata Firefighters.

With the flick of a switch, almost a dozen law enforcement officers and K9's were being lifted 30 feet into the air.

"They made two trips. They lifted a couple officers and K9 officers up there and then came back and got a couple more. It was a pretty neat deal," said Nowata Police Chief Mike McElhaney.

Officers from several agencies were coming together to catch three people who they say broke into a Nowata supply store. Nowata Police Chief Mike McElhaney says two officers saw the suspects run through the closed store around two in the morning and called for backup.

"There is a staircase that goes up and there was a latch. When my officer would push on the latch it was trying to open but then it would fall back down real heavy. Come to find out one of them was laying on top of it," said McElhaney.

With a lift from the Nowata Fire Department officers were able to get to and arrest Jonathan Meier and the two other suspects.

"It's awesome to see everybody come together and it worked perfectly. Nobody got hurt. The subjects were taken into custody. They did have quite a bit of merchandise from inside the store that they were planning on getting away with. Thankfully for us, it didn't work in their favor," said McElhaney.

Tonight the suspects face several complaints including burglary.

"We are shorthanded but my guys care about this community and they give 100% on a daily basis and this just proves it," said McElhaney.

Officers say the suspects might be connected to other crimes.