By Shereen Siewert
A 55-year-old man is in custody after a tense 10-hour armed standoff in Stevens Point that began after a report of shots fired at an apartment in the city.
Police were called at about 5:15 p.m. Friday to an apartment in the 700 block of Johns Drive for a report of shots fired.
Another man and a woman who were inside the apartment escaped without injury.
A joint Stevens Point-Plover SWAT team responded, blocking public access to the immediate area and negotiated with the man for hours. According to the Point Plover Metro Wire, SPPD Lt. Dana Williams said the suspect was “very agitated” and refused to come out of the apartment, telling officers they would have to shoot him. Nearby residents were told to shelter in place.
The Portage Co. Sheriff’s Department dispatched its mobile command center at about 9:45 p.m., Point Plover Metro Wire reports. Williams said the large van was used to allow officers walking perimeter could rotate out of the windy 20-degree weather.
Officers at about 3:15 a.m. forced entry into the apartment and took the man in custody. Police say a firearm was discovered inside.
The name of the suspect has not yet been released.
