TULSA, Okla. - Tulsa police confiscated a powerful handgun and placed a man in emergency mental health detention Friday afternoon, Oct. 9, 2026, after he allegedly posted Instagram videos displaying a revolver and threatening to kill a woman while staying at a crowded downtown hotel.

Officers responded at approximately 3:28 p.m. to the DoubleTree Downtown at 616 W. 7th Street after hotel employees called 911 about alarming social media posts made by a guest.

According to the Tulsa Police Department, staff received multiple alerts indicating the man was broadcasting live videos on Instagram in which he displayed a silver handgun and threatened an unidentified woman.

Officers Review Instagram Videos Showing Armed Hotel Guest

As patrol officers responded to the hotel, crisis intervention personnel and police supervisors contacted the man by telephone in an effort to resolve the situation peacefully.

Investigators reviewed the circulating Instagram videos and confirmed that the man had been waving a revolver inside his hotel room.

Police also discovered that the man had posted sensitive personal information about his sister, including residential security passcodes, addresses and telephone numbers.

Authorities said an active protective order had been filed against him. Police did not specify the relationship between the protected party and the woman allegedly threatened in the videos.

With numerous guests and employees inside the hotel, responding officers worked to establish contact with the man while assessing the potential danger.

Man Taken Into Custody After Extended Negotiations

Officers eventually made direct contact with the guest and engaged him in extended discussions.

The encounter ended without physical confrontation, and officers took the man into protective custody.

Following his detention, the man told officers he had intended to provoke police into fatally shooting him, a scenario commonly referred to as "suicide by cop."

Officers subsequently searched the hotel room and recovered a silver-and-black Smith & Wesson .500 Magnum revolver.

Police said the threats, the presence of the firearm and the potential danger to hotel occupants contributed to their decision to initiate an emergency mental health detention.

The man was transported to the Crisis Care Center for an immediate psychiatric assessment.