Police: Glenpool Man Arrested For Holding Woman, Child Hostage

An alert dispatcher and police officers may have saved the lives of a Glenpool woman and her child Friday. Police say the family was being held captive in their home by convicted felon Cody Robert Mathews.

Mathews reportedly threatened to kill the woman and then himself before officers arrived. He was booked into the Tulsa County Jail on complaints of felony kidnapping (two counts), domestic assault and battery and interfering with an emergency call. He is being held on $100,500 bond.

The woman's sister first called Glenpool police at about 3 p.m. April 26 that she believed her sister was being held hostage by Mathews, her boyfriend. Dispatcher Kent Hoffman called the victim who told him everything was fine, but because of her voice, he was concerned for her safety.

Police were aware that the woman may have been the victim of domestic abuse in the past, according to Officer Andrew Mullenix, GPD. Mullenix said in an arrest report that he also knew Mathews was wanted for questioning for possibly firing a weapon at police during a pursuit.

Officers arrived at the home and tried to check on the resident, but no one answered the door. They reached the woman by telephone when someone arrived at the house to drop off one of the victim's children. Although she told them she was ok, she also requested that they keep the child from entering the home.

Officers continued to ask the woman to come to the front door, telling her that they would make entry if no one answered.

Mullenix said that they because they believed the resident to be in immediate danger, they kicked in the front door and got the woman out of the house. She was screaming and crying, saying "Thank you," according to the report.

The woman told police she and a second child had been held captive for two hours. She had trauma to her mouth and told police Mathews had punched her.

Mathews told officers that he did commit domestic assault and battery but did not hold the woman against her will. He said he didn't want her to open the door because he was afraid he had warrants out for his arrest for a traffic offense. He told police the woman was lying to get him in trouble and that he could also claim he was being held against his will.

The 23-year-old Mathews has felony convictions for drug possession and eluding police.

Officer Mullenix said they began the paperwork to get an Emergency Protective Order for the victim and requested a high bond amount out of fear for the family's safety.