SGT. Robert Swartz
Officer: Oklahoma County Sheriff's Office, Sergeant Robert Swartz
Date: 8/22/2022 Location: Oklahoma City, OK FACTORS (1,4,5,7,8,15,17,18,19)
Perpetrator(s) Involved: Benjamin Plank
Criminal Activity History/Involved: Law enforcement was called to Plank’s house for disturbances five times during the past year and also dealt with him for illegal dumping of trash. / Plank was being served with an eviction notice.
Mental Illness: Yes, Plank made statements about taking his guns and “ending it all,” and his mother called 911 to report he was “acting up, and placing things in the driveway.”
Substance Abuse History/Involved: Unknown. / None stated.
Race/Sex/Age: White/Male/35
What prompted the initial contact with the killer? At around 1:15 p.m. on August 22, 2022, three Oklahoma County Sheriff’s deputies were serving an eviction notice to Benjamin Plank at the house he was residing in.
Actions taken by subject toward police: Plank was “uncooperative” when the deputies showed up at his front door. As the deputies went around to the rear door, Plank ambushed them and opened fire, shooting Sgt. Robert Swartz several times. Plank continued shooting, hitting Deputy Sheriff Mark Johns and then fled in a pick-up truck with a boat attached to it.
Reactions by the police: Deputy Johns was shot and had an artery grazed while trying to shield the injured Sgt. Swartz from being shot again. The two injured deputies were rushed to a hospital where tragically Sgt. Swartz died from his wounds and Deputy Johns was in stable condition. A description of Plank and his vehicle was broadcast to all agencies and some Oklahoma City police officers spotted it. While pursuing the vehicle, the police exchanged gunfire with Plank until he came to a stop outside the entrance to Tinker Air Force Base. Despite putting his hands up to surrender, Plank remained uncooperative so he was tackled by the officers, shot with a stun gun and taken into custody.
How murdered? Sgt. Swartz was ambushed and fatally shot while serving an eviction notice.
What could have been done differently for the officer to still be alive? As Sheriff Tommie Johnson said of his deputies, “These are the things that they do eight, ten, twelve hours per day, every single day. They’re both extremely professional, extremely careful. Unfortunately, something went wrong.”
Would the officer have been justified to use deadly force before being murdered? NA, the deputies were ambushed. Based on the evidence, Oklahoma City Police Chief Wade Gourley is convinced Plank “was planning on killing any law enforcement that came to his house.”
Outcome for the cop-killer: Plank was arrested after a vehicle pursuit and faces charges for first-degree murder, shooting with intent to kill, assault and battery with a deadly weapon and use of a vehicle in the discharge of a weapon.
