Suspect in armed standoff arrested at 10-hour mark

By Brandi Makuski

Police have arrested a 55-year-old man following an armed standoff that ended at 3:16 a.m.

Local law enforcement agencies responded to the 700 block of Johns Dr. at 5:14 p.m. on Jan. 29 after someone reported a man inside an apartment fired several shots during an argument with another man. A joint Stevens Point-Plover SWAT team was deployed to the area, and officers blocked off John’s Dr. at both ends.

The other man and one woman who were inside the apartment during the shooting left the residence shortly afterward without incident.

Police had the suspect contained in a building of the Madison View apartment complex, where he’d barricaded himself for 10 hours. Negotiators attempted to communicate with the suspect for several hours, but the man was “very agitated,” according to Lt. Dana Williams from SPPD.

The man refused to come out of the residence, telling officers they would have to shoot him.

Due to deteriorating weather conditions, officers forced their way into the apartment at 3:16 a.m. and took the man into custody. A gun was found in the residence but no further details about the weapon were released.

No one was injured during the standoff, Williams said. An ambulance from the Stevens Point Fire Department was stationed at SPASH.

Several area residents were told to shelter in place, with some residents unable to return to their homes for several hours.

The Portage Co. Sheriff’s Office dispatched its mobile command center at about 9:45 p.m. Williams said the large van was being used Friday night so officers walking perimeter could rotate out of the windy 20-degree weather.

The suspect’s identity has not been released. It was not immediately clear what, if any, charges would be filed.

Officers from the Wisconsin State Patrol, the Portage Co. Sheriff’s Office, and UW-Stevens Point, as well as the Stevens Point Fire Department, all assisted on the scene.