Man Arrested After Manhunt, Standoff In Rogers County

A burglary suspect who caused a standoff in two counties is now in the Craig County Jail.

The Craig County Sheriff’s Office says they had been looking for Tommy Downing for weeks.

Sheriff Heath Winfrey says, “We went to effect arrest on him about 12:00 today.  During that time, he was able to escape arrest.”

Deputies say they finally found him northwest of Chelsea walking down railroad tracks, but he threatened to cut his wrists and ran off into a densely wooded area, eventually ending up in a pond.

That’s when the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, a game warden, and the Rogers County Sheriff’s Office joined the search.

“We didn’t know what type of edged weapon he might have,” said Rogers County Sheriff Scott Walton.  “We didn’t want to become involved in some type of aquatic wrestling match out there, so just time on our side, slow it down.”

Sheriff Walton says he believes Downing is associated with a group of people who lead Mayes County deputies on a chase on Monday.  One of those suspects is still on the loose.

With help from an OHP negotiator, deputies say they were able to arrest Downing.

“The goal was to get a bad guy out of a pond and in handcuffs and going to jail,” said Walton.

Area resident Mandy Walker says Downing is a part of her family and that he is a good person who shouldn’t have ran from deputies.

“He started staying with us.  He’s been looking for a job, trying to do better,” she said.  “He has past warrants and those just caught up with him.”