Suicidal Man Taken In Custody After Expansive Scituate Manhunt

SCITUATE (CBS) – A man has been taken into custody after an expansive search that lasted several hours in Scituate.

Three schools were ordered to shelter in place while police and SWAT teams searched for a possibly armed man who threatened to harm officers.

The search took place on Route 3A in the area of Booth Hill Road.

A woman called police around 8:30 a.m. after a 46-year-old Oxford man she was with got out of her car on Route 3A, made suicidal statements and ran into the woods near police headquarters.

The man told police he was armed with two guns and would "shoot police," but no weapons have been found.

Cushing Elementary School, Gates Middle School and Scituate High School students were ordered to shelter in place.

Schools were initially in lockdown mode but later shifted to shelter in place, meaning no one was allowed in or out.

Massachusetts State Police assisted in the search in the air and on the ground. The search came to an end around 1 p.m., more than four hours after it began.

Police had intermittent phone contact with the suspect throughout the incident.

The suspect's identity has not been released. Scituate Police say he appeared to be intoxicated and had a warrant out for his arrest for allegedly violating a restraining order.

Scituate Police Chief Michael Stewart said the man is not currently facing charges related to Tuesday's threats. He will, however, be arraigned Wednesday in Hingham on unrelated charges.

Residents around town were asked to stay inside during while the search was going on.

"Every day you never know what the next day is going to bring. Things like this seem to happen like it's routine, which is uncalled for," resident Fritz Dehn said.

Stewart said that while the department had to use significant resources for the search, it was worthwhile due to the end result.

"Time and resources when everybody is safe at the end of the day, that's nothing. We'll gladly deploy those type of resources," said Stewart.

WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Lana Jones reports