| TERRORIST THREATS - A man police in Elkins were trying to serve a warrant on Thursday night took his own life at some point during a several hour long standoff.
The Elkins Police Department released more information about the standoff in a Friday afternoon news release.
Department officers and members of the EPD SWAT team arrived at the residence on Evans Drive in South Elkins at about 6:30 p.m. Thursday with a felony warrant. They alleged the man inside had been making terroristric threats.
Authorities said they negotiated with the man for several hours. Police finally decided to enter the home, when they did they found the man dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
His name has not been released.
Elkins Police Chief Travis Bennett said they decided to originally approach the residence using the department’s high-risk warrant service protocol because of the nature of the case.
“That includes use of our SWAT officers and the department’s MRAP vehicle, as well as a public notice to shelter in place and the evacuation of nearby residences as a precaution,” Bennett said.
It was believed the man inside had a number of firearms and the situation could turn violent.
“The suspect had made it known that he was armed and ready to confront law enforcement officers with deadly force and had prepared his residence for a standoff,” Bennett said. “Once we were on scene and had evacuated the neighboring residences, we found that the suspect had indeed barricaded himself inside the house and was refusing to come out.”
Bennett said they negotiated with he man for several hours to no avail and they tried to force him out with non-lethal chemical irritants but nothing worked. The SWAT team entered the residence at about 10:30 p.m.
“Upon entering, my officers observed that the suspect had installed heavy barricades and other fortifications in the house,” Bennett said. “They found the suspect deceased with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.”
Bennett said no one outside the residence had fired any shots.
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