Creek County Sheriff’s Deputy Adam James Heitman, 38, died Thursday, July 16, 2026, after suffering a medical emergency at the Creek County Sheriff’s Office in Sapulpa, Oklahoma.
Deputy Heitman was working as part of a multi-agency arrest team — including the Creek County Sheriff’s Office Task Force, the U.S. Marshals Service, Muscogee Nation Lighthorse Police, and Creek County deputies — attempting to take a wanted felon, Justin Hughes, into custody. Hughes, who had active felony warrants and was accused of assaulting an officer during a prior escape, attempted to flee on foot. He jumped a fence, crossed a creek, and ran through an open field before Deputy Heitman and his K-9 partner, Thanos, caught up to him and took him into custody without further incident.
Roughly an hour later, back at the Creek County Sheriff’s Office, Deputy Heitman suffered a medical emergency. Fellow deputies, Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers, Creek County EMS, and the Sapulpa Fire Department responded and provided emergency care before he was transported to Ascension St. John Sapulpa Hospital. He was pronounced dead at 7:41 p.m.
Deputy Heitman served with the Creek County Sheriff’s Office since 2022 as a patrol deputy and K-9 handler. Before that, he spent two years with the Kiefer Police Department. He served four years in the United States Marine Corps with the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, deploying to Iraq as a team leader and later serving as a reconnaissance Marine, combat instructor, and weapons instructor before his honorable discharge in 2010. Within months of joining the sheriff’s office, he received the Sheriff’s Life Saving Award for saving the life of an overdose victim.
Deputy Heitman is survived by his wife and two daughters. A procession was held Thursday afternoon as he was escorted from the Medical Examiner’s Office to a funeral home in Sapulpa.
Suspect Justin Hughes remains in custody. He faces pending charges of assault and battery on a police officer and escape from arrest tied to a July 7 incident with Depew Police, in addition to a lengthy prior record in Oklahoma.
Condolences to Deputy Heitman’s family, the Creek County Sheriff’s Office, and the Sapulpa community.
A true American hero. Thank you for your service.