Alleged threat on U.S. Rep. John Sullivan lands man in jail
BY AMANDA BLAND World Staff Writer
Thursday, August 02, 2012
8/02/12 at 7:28 AM
SKIATOOK - A man remains in custody after police say he entered the Skiatook police station and threatened to kill U.S. Rep. John Sullivan, R-Okla.
Wayne Franklin Miles, 52, entered the police station at 11:50 p.m. July 22, an administrative assistant to Tulsa County Sheriff's Office spokesman Sgt. Shannon Clark said. The first public court records in the case were filed Wednesday.
Miles complained that Sullivan was "doing some far-fetched things ... and said he was going to harm the congressman," FBI Special Agent Clay Simmonds said.
Miles asked to speak with an officer and accused Sullivan of putting a "hit" out on his life, the assistant said.
The officer arrested Miles with the belief he posed an immediate danger, and he was taken to the Tulsa Jail, authorities said.
Skiatook police detectives questioned Miles the next morning, and he reiterated his belief that he was being watched and shot at, according to an affidavit by Officer Jerry Bullard. He said "he would protect himself and would shoot (Sullivan)," Bullard wrote.
Miles also indicated that he was a certified armed guard and that he carried weapons in his vehicle, according to the affidavit.
Bullard wrote in the affidavit that he believes that Miles is "mentally unstable and is in possession of a firearm or firearms and would be capable of carrying out the threat of death or serious bodily harm to Congressman John Sullivan or someone believed to be Congressman John Sullivan if he had the means."
Upon serving a search warrant at Miles' home in the 3300 block of East 176th Street North, police found weapons that include a shotgun, several rifles, fighting knives and an AK 47-type bayonet as well as more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition, a body armor vest and a Ku Klux Klan pamphlet, court documents show.
Miles posted bond and was released from state custody but was later arrested on federal complaints by the FBI, Simmonds said.
Sand Springs police also had arrested Miles in recent weeks, and Tulsa County prosecutors filed charges against him alleging possession of methamphetamine and larceny of merchandise from a Dollar General store on July 17. He also faces pending misdemeanor charges of violating a protective order.
Sullivan told the Tulsa World he's experienced previous threats but none as serious as this.
"At first I thought it was a joke," Sullivan said Wednesday night.
He said he then became concerned for his family's safety.
He declined to comment further but said additional security measures to protect him and his family are in place.
Sullivan's spokesman, John Tidwell, said Wednesday that "we are cooperating with law enforcement, and they have advised us not to comment in an ongoing criminal investigation."
Miles appears in federal district court Monday.
The possibility of violence against a member of Congress became real in January 2011, when U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., and 18 other people were shot at a constituent meeting outside a supermarket near Tucson. Six of those people died, including a federal judge, a member of Giffords' staff, and a child.
Jared Lee Loughner of Tucson faces federal charges that include the attempted assassination of a member of Congress and the assassination of a federal judge.
Original Print Headline: Man held in threat on life of Sullivan
Amanda Bland 918-581-8413
amanda.bland@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
Wayne Franklin Miles: Weapons and 1,000 rounds of ammunition were found in his home, records show
John Sullivan: Security measures are in place to protect him and his family
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