In-Custody Suicide Reported At The Southwest District Police Station
BALTIMORE (WJZ)--How did a wanted man with a violent past get a gun into Baltimore's southwest police district? The man committed suicide just one room away from officers.
Christie Ileto has the latest on the security questions being raised.
Undetected and unobserved. A suspect was taken into custody and able to cloak a high-caliber gun into a police station before allegedly fatally shooting himself inside.
"I heard, like, a big book and I just thought it was anything," said resident Damontre McLeod.
But the pillar of safety became a crime scene Tuesday.
"We clearly have a lot of questions as to how this could have transpired," said Deputy Commissioner Jerry Rodriguez.
Top brass can't fathom how and why the weapon slipped through the cracks. The 38-year-old suspect, identified as Tyree Woodson, had been held for hours before officials say he went to the bathroom and pulled the trigger.
"We don't know how the weapon made its way into the police station, let alone into the bathroom," Rodriguez said. "We know it was not our weapon."
It's police policy to pat down anyone who is being transported to make sure they don't have any weapons on them. Top brass say it's unclear if that protocol was followed.
"Anything short of thorough would not have been acceptable," Rodriguez said.
Woodson---sought on attempted murder and weapons charges---is labeled as gang-affiliated with a violent rap sheet.
"I don't know why they would bring a gun with them," resident Tom Rudzki said.
It's these questions residents nearby and police are asking as this latest shooting exposes a weakness in some of the city's police stations' security.
This isn't the first time someone got a non-police weapon into a police station. In March 2012, a loaded handgun was found inside a holding cell.
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