SAPULPA, Okla. — The Creek County Sheriff’s Office is mourning Deputy Adam James Heitman, a 38-year-old Marine veteran and K-9 handler who died July 15 after suffering a medical emergency following an arrest operation in Sapulpa.

The sheriff’s office announced Heitman’s death as a line-of-duty death in an agency statement. Local reports from Sapulpa Times and News On 6 carried the department’s account and identified the deputy.

Arrest operation in Sapulpa

According to the sheriff’s office account reported by the two local outlets, Heitman was part of a multi-agency team working to arrest a man wanted on multiple felony warrants. The operation included the Creek County Sheriff’s Office Task Force, the U.S. Marshals Service, Muscogee Nation Lighthorse Police and other Creek County deputies.

Authorities said the man ran from officers by jumping a fence, crossing a creek and moving through an open field. Heitman and his K-9 partner, Thanos, pursued and apprehended him. The suspect was taken into custody.

Less than an hour later, after returning to the sheriff’s office, Heitman suffered what the agency described as a medical emergency. Deputies and Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers began emergency care, and Creek County EMS and the Sapulpa Fire Department continued treatment. Heitman was transported to Ascension St. John Sapulpa, where he was pronounced dead at 7:41 p.m., according to the agency account.

The sheriff’s office did not identify a medical cause in the statement reviewed for this report. ThinBlueNews is not speculating beyond the information released by the agency.

A Marine, lifesaving deputy and K-9 handler

Before joining the Creek County Sheriff’s Office in 2022, Heitman served two years with the Kiefer Police Department. He also served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps, including a deployment to Iraq with 1st Battalion, 7th Marines. The sheriff’s office said he later served as a reconnaissance Marine, combat instructor and weapons instructor before his honorable discharge in 2010.

Heitman worked as a patrol deputy and K-9 handler. Within months of joining the sheriff’s office, he received the agency’s Life Saving Award after helping save an overdose victim.

“Deputy Heitman exemplified courage, service, and dedication to others. He served his community, his fellow deputies, and his country with honor.”

Creek County Sheriff’s Office, as quoted by Sapulpa Times

The agency said Heitman is survived by his wife and two daughters. Funeral arrangements were pending as of the latest official update. News On 6 reported that law-enforcement officers and community members honored Heitman with a procession Thursday as his body was escorted from the medical examiner’s office to a Sapulpa funeral home.

End of Watch

Deputy Adam James Heitman
Creek County Sheriff’s Office, Oklahoma
End of Watch: July 15, 2026

ThinBlueNews extends condolences to Deputy Heitman’s family, K-9 Thanos, his colleagues at the Creek County Sheriff’s Office and the Oklahoma law-enforcement community.

Sources and image attribution

Featured-image note: Sapulpa Times published the portrait with the caption “Provided photo.” It shows Deputy Heitman in uniform before Creek County Sheriff’s Office insignia. ThinBlueNews cropped the real portrait and added a restrained memorial lower-third; it is not synthetic or representative incident imagery.

This report may be updated when the sheriff’s office releases funeral arrangements or additional official information. If family, colleagues or agency representatives see anything that should be corrected, please contact ThinBlueNews through our corrections and editorial standards page.