Barricaded Man Had Aggravated Assault, Weapons Warrant: Prosecutor

TINTON FALLS, NJ – A 38-year-old Tinton Falls man who was wanted on an aggravated assault charge and weapons charges was arrested Tuesday after he barricaded himself in the attic of a home, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni said Tuesday night.

Ryan M. Russell, 38, is being held at the Monmouth Count Correctional Institute, Freehold Township, on charges of third-degree aggravated assault, third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose related to an Oct. 11, 2016, incident, said Charles Webster, spokesman for the prosecutor's office.

Russell was arrested after officers from the Tinton Falls Police Department trusted their instincts and returned to a residence where a call for service had recently been made, Webster said.

Tinton Falls Police were called to the home in the Fox Chase development at 8:14 a.m. after reports of loud banging noises coming from a home, Webster said. An officer responded and saw a male, now identified as Russell, in the rear yard of the home. Russell, who had been staying at the home, went in the home before the officer was able to make contact with him, Webster said.

The officer then went to the front door of the home and made contact with a resident who indicated that there were no issues or any cause for alarm, Webster said. After being initially satisfied that there was no cause for alarm, the officer left; however, based upon the circumstances of the call, the officer conducted some additional checks through police databases and determined that there may have been an individual at the home with an outstanding warrant for his arrest, Webster said.

Police went back to the home and made contact with a resident, who then allowed them to check the home for anyone else. While police were present, they heard what they believed to be an individual inside the garage, Webster said. An officer then escorted the unidentified occupants out of the home for their safety and secured the premises, he said.

Tinton Falls police called the Monmouth County Emergency Response Team, and members of MOCERT and other agencies responded to assist in attempting to apprehend Russell, who they thought was barricaded in the garage, Webster said. After significant attempts to convince him to come out of the garage or to speak with the officers, members of the MOCERT team entered and found Russell hiding in an attic of the home, Webster said.

Russell was arrested on the warrant, which was a result of his failure to appear for an arraignment on the charges; the warrant had specified “hold without bail,” Webster said.

Additional charges connected to Tuesday’s incident are forthcoming, he said.

Photo via Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office