Suspect Surrenders In North Side Standoff
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - There were some tense moments on Pittsburgh's North Side Friday morning when a fugitive barricaded himself inside an apartment with a woman and two small children.
The Pittsburgh SWAT Team responded and the suspect eventually surrendered.
Shortly after 8 a.m., members of the Western Pennsylvania Fugitive Task Force arrived on the 1100-block of Sheffield Street intent on arresting Joey Adams, a convicted drug dealer who had escaped from the Renewal Center halfway house downtown three months ago.
"When we arrived on the scene we heard noise inside, knew it was occupied, made repeated attempts to get a response," said Mike Baughman, a U.S. Marshal.
The agents broke down the door and forced their way in, discovering that Adams had barricaded himself in a second floor bedroom with the woman and two children.
"We gave repeated calls for him to surrender himself and he would not comply, at that point we notified Pittsburgh Police SWAT," Baughman said.
When SWAT arrived and surrounded the apartment house with high-powered weapons and body armor, their negotiation proved successful.
Adams surrendered and was taken into custody to face parole violations and resisting arrest as well as other charges.
Once in custody, it was determined that he was not armed - something the arresting officers could not assume and a reason they proceeded with extra caution.
"Because the female and the two small children were in there and nobody was coming in, we didn't know. We were absolutely not sure. We wanted to do the prudent thing and call in SWAT to negotiate a surrender," Baughman added. "No one was hurt and that's the bottom line, and thankfully it turned out that way."
