Dealing with a rash of home invasions in Tulsa

Tulsa has had a string of home invasions lately, in an area from Lewis to Yale and Pine to Apache. Nearly all the victims have been Hispanic. There was another one Sunday night where the suspects got

Monday, December 12th 2005, 4:55 pm

By: News On 6

Tulsa has had a string of home invasions lately, in an area from Lewis to Yale and Pine to Apache. Nearly all the victims have been Hispanic. There was another one Sunday night where the suspects got $1,200.

News on 6 crime reporter Lori Fullbright looks at how you can protect yourself from these violent crimes.

Tulsa Police believe a group of a dozen men are responsible for 15 home invasions. Three men are now in custody. Police arrested 18-year-old Andrew Bowie, 21-year-old Arthur Zachary and 25-year-old Bennie Denson within minutes of a home invasion Friday. Police have warrants out for three more men, which leaves a handful more they're still tracking.

Officers believe the men know their victims will have a lot of cash, they just don't know how the robbers are doing it.

Tulsa Police robbery squad Sgt Dave Walker: "this is who we have in custody, so we can go back and look at this is where they hang out and work so we can see if there are any common denominators with the suspects, uh, victims."

If you must carry a lot of cash, don't carry it all in one place, instead, spread it around. That way, if you're robbed, you might not lose everything. Don't let people behind you in line or next to you, see how much cash you have.

And finally, check your rearview mirror after you leave a check cashing place or ATM. If you are being followed, don't go home; go to a well-lit, well-populated area and call police.

Another way to be safe at home is to have a metal front door, not wood and make sure your deadbolt goes at least a couple of inches into a metal door frame.

Tulsa Police say the robbers use to knock and create a fake story to get inside, but now they just kick in the doors. And the violence is getting worse; shots were fired in the past three or four cases.