2 Tulsa Police Officers Charged With Felony

Two Tulsa Police officers on Tuesday were charged with a felony for being an accessory after a crime.  

Both Lt. Marcus Harper and Officer Ananias Carson were booked in the Tulsa County Jail Tuesday afternoon after charges were filed.  

The affidavit says Lt. Harper and Officer Carson tried to cover up a former officer’s involvement in relation to a shooting on August 24, 2020 near 61st and Peoria. 

Court records say Lt. Harper and Officer Carson went over to former Tulsa Police Officer Latoya Dythe's apartment, where one of the suspects in the shooting and the gun used were in her apartment.  

The affidavit says Harper and Carson told the suspect to get rid of the gun and leave town and never mention their involvement. 

The affidavit says Carson and Harper left before other officers arrived to investigate.  

Harper has been with the department since 1995 and his wife, Vanessa Hall-Harper, is a Tulsa City Councilor.  

Lt. Harper was a supervisor in the major crimes unit in the detective division, which is responsible for evidence collection and crime scene investigations.  

Carson has been with the department since 2006 and was assigned to the Riverside Division.  

Chief Wendell Franklin emphasized at a news conference today that Tulsans should be able to trust their officers, and that officers should be able to trust the integrity of the officer standing next to them.  

"My hope is that the community sees that this department and I am not going to stand idly by and let things run rampant on this department. The expectations that I set I don't think are unachievable,” Tulsa Police Chief Wendell Franklin said. “Again, I want the best for this department and the best for this city, and I'm going to work to ensure that." 

Chief Franklin said he is placing both officers on leave without pay. He said both have been on leave with pay since last August. 

Former Officer Dythe was sentenced this year in a separate investigation for buying a gun for her boyfriend and lying about it on federal forms.