2.21.22 – TULSA, Okla. (KTUL)
A local security company that employees more than 100 armed guards across Oklahoma says the demand is ramping up. Citadel Intelligence President and CEO Greg Douglass said since the pandemic began they’ve had more people wanting their services.
“There’s just a lot more concern and security issues in the world today than there was three years ago. A lot of businesses have put in measures that are beyond the scope of a lot of their employees to handle,” Douglass said. “We do hospitals, grocery stores, cannabis operations, you name it, we provide armed guards.”
Several Tulsa businesses have been targets of recent crimes.
Because of the cyberattack last spring, Tulsa police don’t have the data on commercial burglaries.
Tulsa Police Officer Danny Bean did have advice on how not to become a victim.
First, he recommended lights and cameras.
TPD posts security footage on Facebook that helps them track down suspects.
“It really leads to a lot of tips and a lot of identification of suspects,” Bean said.
Bean said another thing to do is have an alarm system.
“Register with us or with us or with the City, however you need to do that, for your permit that way if your alarm does go off whether you’re there or not, 911 is going to be made aware of that and we’ll get a call,” Bean said.
Enforcing COVID-19 mitigation efforts has been a big task for security guards, Douglass said.
Due to demand, Douglass said business owners can expect to pay more for security.
“The rates have gone up, just like everything else,” Douglass said.
TPD said officers and dispatch work with security guards should they need to respond to a business.
“If that’s an expense they want to use, sure absolutely,” Douglass said. “That can be a good thing, having someone available to be there overnight is always a really good thing.”
Guards in Oklahoma must complete training for certain licenses.
There are armed and unarmed guard licenses, as well as private investigator licenses, Douglass said.