Parents ordered to pay child support and ignore the court order are in for a surprise District Attorney Richard Gray said this week.

"In fact, they could find themselves in jail," Gray said.

Gray said that in the past two months, since a full-time Child Support Enforcement Division investigator has been on the job, 44 people have been picked up on bench warrants for failure to pay child support. Tommy Morgan is the child support investigator.

"We feel this is an excellent way to get the attention of someone who is ignoring their child support obligation," Gray said. "The parents out there supporting their children alone need our assistance, and we are not afraid to jail offenders who have outstanding bench warrants."

Gray said that, since Oct. 1, over $29,500 has been collected in bonds paid to release the offender from the county jail and set them on a court docket.

Gray's prosecutorial district, one of the largest in the state he said, includes Sequoyah, Cherokee, Adair and Wagoner Counties.

"There are two child support offices in the district, in Sallisaw and in Tahlequah, with a combined caseload of over 5,200 cases," Gray said. In September alone, the child support enforcement offices collected $428,189 for their clients.

"The increase in collections is due in part to the bond money we have been able to collect through our investigator," Gray said. "People who know they have a bench warrant should get in contact with the local office to avoid possible jail time."

Morgan has 17 years of experience in law enforcement Gray said.

He said parents who owe child support may call the toll-free line, 1-800-522-2922, between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday to obtain information on their case.

Each office is also available by e-mail. The Sallisaw office, which serves Sequoyah and Adair Counties, is at csed.Sallisaw@okdhs.org. The Tahlequah office, which serves Cherokee and Wagoner Counties, is at csed.Tahlequah@okdhs.org.