Safe Oklahoma Grants Awarded To Tulsa Area Law Enforcement Agencies

The Oklahoma Attorney General handed out money Tuesday to the Tulsa, Broken Arrow and Owasso police departments along with the Wagoner County Sheriff's office.

Even though the state is in a budget shortfall, the legislature didn't touch the money, which means nearly $400,000 is going to the four different agencies in Green Country.

Tulsa police got the bulk of the money, nearly $300,000.

They say they'll spend the money to get drug dealers and illegal guns off the streets.

They say last year's money allowed them to get 335 illegal guns out of the hands of criminals. They say they've also seen a 700 percent increase in heroin related arrests and seizures.

The attorney general says the focus in not on possession of drugs, it's drug dealers.

"If you sell poison to somebody and they end up in the ER or worse, dead, you've committed a violent crime,” said Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter.

"They're in the cross hairs of our department,” said Tulsa Deputy Chief Dennis Larsen. “We want them in jail; we want them off the street.”

The Wagoner County Sheriff's office received nearly $33,000.

They plan to buy 17 more in car camera systems. That will give them 20, one for every deputy who patrols the county.

"Most of my deputies work alone,” said Wagoner County Sheriff Chris Elliott. “I have very few deputies to cover a very large county and to have a watch guard video system in there is going to make them safer."

Owasso police got more than $36,000.

They plan to use it to move their patrols to high crime areas as well as buy equipment to do forensic exams of computers in cyber cases.

Broken Arrow received nearly $40,000.

They plan to use it to analyze crimes so they can put their officers where they're needed most.

They say the money will take drugs, illegal guns and criminals off the streets.