Task force members will help stop criminals who are out to take advantage of holiday shoppers.

In its nearly three months of existence, the Tulsa Police Department’s Safe City Initiative has netted at least 235 arrests and 31 guns.

On Wednesday, the officers assigned to the initiative began working with other Tulsa Police Department units in stepped-up holiday patrols, Capt. Matt Kirkland said.

The Police Department began the Safe City Initiative on Aug. 26 in an effort to reduce violent crime throughout the city by targeting known violent offenders and locations with a history of violent crime.

The department has decided to continue the initiative through the end of the year.

Safe City officers will have a visible presence in shopping areas by providing foot patrols and marked cars in high-traffic areas.

In addition, officers in plain clothes will watch for robbers, burglars and car thieves at targeted locations.

They also will use decoy cars to entice people who are casing parking lots for cars to steal or burglarize. If someone tries to get into the vehicles, officers will arrest them in the act.

Kirkland said officers will be working in shopping areas almost the entire time the malls are open.

Meanwhile, violent criminals continue to be the unit’s top targets.

In the month of October alone, Safe City officers made 71 arrests resulting in 53 felony charges and 18 misdemeanor charges. The officers also recovered 18 guns, records show.

Of

“Last week, we caught an armed robber we had been looking for for a while,” Kirkland said.

One robbery warrant and several other warrants had been issued for the juvenile’s arrest, and he had been named as a suspect in a shooting.

Other statistics show that since the unit was originated, the Safe City officers have located and arrested eight suspects for robbery, 13 for burglary- related charges, four for shooting with an intent to kill and one for homicide.

Nicole Marshall 581-8459
nicole.marshall@tulsaworld.com

By the numbers

Arrests: 235

Guns confiscated: 31

Cash seized: $8,900

Search warrants served: 5

Felony charges filed: 152

Misdemeanors filed: 95