Rogers County Deputies Search Jail Amid Potential Threat

Rogers County deputies woke inmates Tuesday with a surprise top to bottom search of the jail. The sheriff’s office said they learned inmates have been planning to take a jailer hostage and takeover the jail, so the sheriff decided to strike first.

The Rogers County Sheriff’s office conducted a thorough search of the jail today. The Sheriff’s Office said this was in response to them learning inmates planned to take a detention officer and take over the jail.

Sheriff Scott Walton said in his 12 years as sheriff, he's never dealt with a threat this serious against the jail or jail staff. He said the shakedown was to let inmates know this behavior will not be tolerated.

Rogers County jail inmates got a stern wake-up call Tuesday morning.

"After rumblings of a takeover, a riot, detention officers getting hurt, it was time to do a shakedown,” said Walton.

Walton said his team recently learned several inmates were upset about their court proceedings being delayed due to COVID-19, so they planned to take control of the jail.

More than a dozen detention officers searched cells from top to bottom, looking for weapons and drugs and found makeshift knives.

"A pair of eye glasses. They've taken it and sharpened the end of it. You can take that and put it in the palm of your hand and if you walk up and get somebody by the soft tissue behind the ear, that can become very dangerous,” said Deputy Quint Tucker.

Deputies said inmates have 24 hours a day, to sit around and think about how to make weapons, hide them and try to use them.

"They will take their blanket, then put your fist in there, then wrap it tight, then you've got a homemade set of brass knuckles pretty much,” Tucker said.

They said the items they found today show how dangerous and important it is to be a detention officer.

"If any of these inmates think they are going to overthrow this jail, or run this facility or even have an opinion the way it ought to be done, they are so wrong. We want to treat these people as fairly as they will let us, but we want them to know that they are an uninvited house guest in our hotel," said Walton.