Suicidal UPS Employee Subdued After 4-Hour Standoff With Police

PINELLAS PARK, FL – After a four-hour standoff, Pinellas Park SWAT negotiators were able to subdue a man who threatened to kill himself at the UPS Distribution Center in Pinellas Park.

According to police reports, Pinellas Park Police officers responded to the UPS Distribution Center at 4:15 a.m. Monday, Jan. 15, after receiving a report that an unidentified United Postal Service employee brought a gun to work at 5720 126th Ave. and was threatening to commit suicide in the parking lot.

Police say a co-worker saw him in the parking lot pointing a gun to his head and notified security which then called police.

Officers arrived on scene and found the armed man threatening to shoot himself if officers approached him.

The UPS building along with several other industrial businesses in the area and Pinellas Safe Harbor were secured and traffic was closed on 126th Avenue.

SWAT negotiators then arrived on scene and were able to convince the employee to put down his gun and surrender around 8:30 a.m.

The man was taken into protective custody without incident. He was subsequently transferred to a medical facility under the provisions of the Baker Act for mentally disturbed people. No one was injured.

All of 126th Avenue along with the businesses in the area have been reopened.

Photo via Pinellas Park Police