MIDWEST CITY, Okla. – The Midwest City Police Department has reported that a Sapulpa Police officer was killed in their jurisdiction.
Midwest City Police were called out to an unresponsive body at the Traveler’s Inn hotel in the 6800 block of S.E. 29th around 10 p.m. Saturday night.
The owner of the hotel said he saw a truck parked illegally, so he asked a clerk to tell the driver to park it in a proper parking spot.
When the clerk went to the room that the truck was registered under, the door was ajar and he noticed a body lying on the floor. That’s when he called police.
When police arrived, they found a second body inside the hotel room.
The bodies were later identified as 46-year-old Lt. Trey Pritchard and Pritchard’s cousin, 46-year-old Jeffrey Grafton.
Police say Grafton’s son, 22-year-old Jonathan Grafton, checked into hotel around 10 a.m. Saturday.
Jonathon allegedly took his father’s truck without permission. The truck had a GPS system, so Pritchard and Grafton followed the GPS to the hotel to get the truck back, according to police.
Jeffery went in first. Trey followed.
“It’s sad when anybody loses their life, especially if it’s done by who we believe is a relative of one of the victims. And, in the fact that it’s that often when a police officer most likely trying to help a relative recover a vehicle and then loses his life over something like this,” said Midwest City Police Chief Brandon Clabes.
First degree murder warrants were issued for Jonathan Grafton and his 21-year-old girlfriend Daphne Mason.
The vehicle in question was recovered earlier Sunday in the 3600 block of N. Sara Rd. in Yukon., but Jonathan and Daphne were nowhere to be found.
Until Monday morning.
Midwest City police report Grafton and Mason were arrested on outstanding murder warrants out of Oklahoma County without incident at a local convenience store in the northwest part of Enid. A citizen called in to report two individuals sleeping outside the business.
Both Grafton and Mason have been transported to the Enid Police Department.
Investigators from the Midwest City Police Department will be bringing both suspects back to the agency for further investigation.
“We want to thank all the law enforcement agencies involved in this manhunt, especially the United States Marshall Service and Enid Police Department,” Brandon said. “There was an heighten concerned that both murder suspects would be violent when faced with arrest. Fortunately, no one was injured and we are closer to bringing this tragic case to a conclusion.”
