City of Tulsa's budget crunch impacting criminal burglary investigations

Tulsa business owners are feeling the city's budget crunch. The city only has two detectives assigned to work commercial burglaries right now because of cutbacks. <br/><br/>That's one of the

Friday, May 21st 2004, 10:10 am

By: News On 6

Tulsa business owners are feeling the city's budget crunch. The city only has two detectives assigned to work commercial burglaries right now because of cutbacks.

That's one of the reasons Doug Watts didn't even hear from a detective for a week after his business was broken into. He understands the cutbacks, but says it's frustrating, especially when he has the suspect on videotape.

Doug Watts of Mega Watts Computers: "We have fresh evidence right here and we're anxious to get our merchandise back, it's a lot of money."

Tulsa Police say given their reduced budget, it's better to cut detectives than the number of officers on the streets. The city says other departments have taken even bigger cuts and help is on the way since a new class of police cadets begins this summer.