A 48-year-old gunman holding a woman hostage in her apartment on Charleston Boulevard was fatally shot by a SWAT officer early Monday morning after a 12-hour standoff. Police said it appears the suspect randomly chose the woman and entered her unlocked apartment Sunday afternoon.
Published Sunday, April 3, 2011 | 7:57 p.m.
Updated Monday, April 4, 2011 | 10:15 a.m.
Metro Police Capt. Patrick Neville addresses the media about the standoff that ended in an officer-involved shooting. After about 12 hours of negotiations, SWAT officers entered the apartment unit where a 48-year-old man was holding a woman hostage. The suspect fired at SWAT officers, who returned fired and killed him.
Twelve-hour Standoff
KSNV coverage of a 12-hour standoff on East Charleston Boulevard, April 4, 11:00 p.m.
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Metro Police fatally shot a man early Monday after a nearly 12-hour standoff in which the man held a woman hostage in her apartment.
Police Capt. Patrick Neville said officers responded about 5 p.m. Sunday to the Sedona Hills Apartments, 2895 E. Charleston Blvd., after a woman's relative reported to police that the woman was screaming on the phone before the line was disconnected. Meanwhile, the woman inside the apartment called 911 and reported that a man was holding her hostage.
Police arrived and found an apartment door open, then confronted the man and woman inside.
Neville said during a Monday morning news conference that the woman, in her late 20s or early 30s, didn't know the 48-year-old man who had entered her unlocked apartment.
"She had no idea who this individual was," he said. "It appears he randomly chose her."
Police said the man had a weapon and made threats at officers, prompting officers to evacuate the building.
At one point, the man saw an unmarked sedan parked at the complex and apparently assumed it was a Metro Police cruiser, authorities said. The gunman fired three or four shots at the vehicle, striking it once, Neville said.
A 21-year-old man and his three younger siblings who were inside the vehicle escaped unharmed.
Police then returned fire, although authorities haven't determined whether the man was struck during that exchange of gunfire.
The gunfire prompted the start of SWAT negotiations and a standoff that ended about 4:30 a.m. Monday when SWAT members decided to enter the house and rescue the woman.
During the negotiations, police said both the gunman and the woman spoke with police on the phone sporadically over several hours.
As police entered the apartment, Neville said the man fired at officers, prompting one SWAT officer to fire a shot that fatally wounded the man, who died at the scene. Police weren't injured.
The woman was taken to University Medical Center for examinations. Police said it wasn't immediately known whether she was injured or assaulted during the incident.
Police haven't released the man's name or other details about him. They are trying to confirm the identity he gave police while on the phone during negotiations.
Neville said concern for the victim's well-being prompted the decision to send SWAT officers into the apartment unit.
"You have to do what you have to do," he said. "That's what the SWAT team is there for. That's what the negotiators are there for."
Authorities closed several streets in the area of Charleston and 28th Street while crews were at the scene late Sunday and into the overnight hours.
A nearby school was opened for residents who weren't allowed into their homes during the evacuation.
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