'Suicidal' Person In Police Custody After Standoff In Arlington

ARLINGTON, TX — Police and SWAT officers on Wednesday morning responded to a report of a West Arlington resident described as suicidal who was taken into custody after an hours-long standoff.

In a subsequent statement, police described the barricaded man as suicidal. Despite his alleged state, however, police responded with a full arsenal of SWAT equipment in trying to coax him out of his home.

Police said the person, whose identity and age are not known, was in a house in the 5300 block of Holly Trail when officers arrived around 10:30 a.m. He was taken into police custody following the standoff, police said.

Christopher Gamble, a neighbor who lives across the street from the home where the standoff took place, told Patch the incident began between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m., when he heard sirens and saw police cars speeding toward the home.

The suspect was standing on his lawn when police got out of their cars and yelled for him to get on the ground, Gamble said. The suspect raised his hands, turned around and walked back inside his house as police looked on, the neighbor said.

Within an hour, armored vehicles and SWAT officers in tactical gear arrived and parked in front of the house, Gamble told Patch.

He said officers staged in his front lawn, where he stood watching the situation unfold. During the standoff, residents weren't allowed to leave their homes or return to the neighborhood.

"They shut our whole neighborhood down for this," Gamble said.

He described seeing at least 60 officers in tactical gear, including officers "in full fatigues with sniper rifles."

Gamble watched as officers used a speaker system to communicate with the person inside the house.

"We know you've done nothing wrong," Gamble overheard officers saying. "There's no charges being filed against you. We just need you to come out now. We're not going to arrest you. We just want to talk to you."

Around 2:35 p.m., Arlington police announced on Twitter that the standoff had ended.

"It’s over and the suspect has been taken into custody," police wrote in a tweet.

Patch reached out to police for more information on the situation. A public information officer for the Arlington Police Department wrote, "The person is safe and the call should be wrapping up shortly."

Police shared more details about the situation on Thursday morning, writing, "This call involved a suicidal subject that was barricaded. Police resources were used to get him into custody. There is nothing else to report because there was no criminal offense... Our department did a great job communicating to the neighbors that were affected and concerns were addressed."

Lead image via Payton Potter, Patch staff