Man Fatally Shot By Austin Police After Standoff

EAST AUSTIN, TX — A man was fatally shot by police Sunday night after an hours-long standoff resulting in the suspect shooting at officers before he was shot dead after one cop returned fire, officials said.

Police were called just after 7:15 p.m. to the 2100 block of East Anderson Lane in response to a person barricaded at an apartment complex. By around 9:09 p.m., the man — described by Austin Police Department Chief Brian Manley in an early Monday press conference as a 73-year-old Caucasian man — was spotted by members of a SWAT team at the window while armed with a handgun.

Just after midnight early Monday, the chief said at a press conference that police had attempted to coax the man out, but not before the door was breached to remove the man's wife from the apartment. The woman had called police to report the man had struck her while he was intoxicated, but Manley said officers were unable to place the man into custody after forcing themselves in as he had locked himself in a room at the rear portion of the apartment.

At around 9:15 p.m., the chief said, the man emerged from the apartment while shooting at SWAT team members multiple times. Manley said none of the SWAT members were injured, but police tactical units were damaged by bullets and several of the emergency vehicles' tires were punctured from the hail of gunfire.

The chief said one of his officers, a 25-year veteran of the force, returned fire and fatally shot the suspect. The officer will be placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of the investigation as is the custom after officer-involved shootings, Manley added.

Manley urged residents who may have filmed the incident on their cell phones to share the footage with police to help in the subsequent investigation. While officers at the scene wore body cameras, Manley explained, they weren't trained on the man as police scrambled for cover to avoid being hit by gunfire. But a tactical unit did have a mounted rolling camera as it captured the incident's unfolding, the chief noted.

No further details were available. Manley said the active investigation into the scene would last for several hours into Monday morning as detectives piece together what occurred. The medical condition of the woman was not disclosed.

Residents were urged to avoid the area during the incident, but it's unclear if any nearby residents were evacuated from their homes as a safety precaution as is sometimes done in such tense situations.

Patch will update when more details are shared by police.