Long police standoff with armed man and 3-year-old daughter in Lynn ends peacefully

LYNN - An armed standoff in Lynn involving a man and his 3-year-old daughter that lasted nearly 24 hours ended peacefully Saturday.

It started Friday afternoon when Lynn Police and a Department of Children and Family Services worker went to a home on Hanover Street for a well-being check on the girl.

When they arrived, police said the unidentified man went to the basement and was "holding a cylindrical object with a six-inch wick coming from one end," according to Massachusetts State Police.

"Officers also reported observing a machete and a crossbow in the basement," State Police spokesman Dave Procopio said in a statement.

Troopers from a special tactical operations team (STOP) were called in with crisis negotiators and the bomb squad. Authorities tried for hours to convince the barricaded man to release his daughter, but they say he stopped communicating with them after midnight.

"Around 11 a.m. today, STOP incident command determined that the suspect was trying to further strengthen the barricades he had erected, had poured a flammable liquid inside the apartment and on a mattress, and had begun igniting fireworks," Procopio said.

Police then went into the house and rescued the girl.

"Team members utilized less-than-lethal force to subdue the combative and assaultive suspect," Procopio said. "We are relieved and grateful that STOP Troopers were able to rescue the little girl before she was burned or otherwise physically injured. She will get the support she needs, and we pray for a safe, healthy and happier future for her."

The man's name was not released. No other information has been released at this point in the investigation.