GREENFIELD — Members of the Hancock County Joint Tactical Team were called to the 200 block of Howard Street Wednesday afternoon after a man barricaded himself inside his home following what started out as a 911 call for a suicidal person, officials said.
The incident ended peacefully around 3:15 p.m. That’s when the man walked outside with his hands in the air.
The man reportedly threatened suicide and told the caller he would shoot officers if the police came to the residence. The man would not answer any phone calls or text messages from anyone. For the next two hours, negotiators continuously attempted to contact him to no avail.
The Greenfield man was booked into the Hancock County Jail around 3:45 p.m. Wednesday afternoon under preliminary charges of intimidation with a deadly weapon and criminal reckless with a deadly weapon. He’s currently being held under no bond until he has an initial appearance in court.
It will be up to the Hancock County Prosecutor’s Office to determine of any charges will be filed once the office looks at the arrest report.
Officials from the Greenfield Police Department (GPD), the Hancock County County Sheriff’s Department and the Indiana State Police were all on the scene around 1 p.m. Wednesday afternoon. Shortly after, officials from the county’s Joint Tactical Team showed up to try and help defuse the situation.
“This incident has resolved peacefully,” officials from the GPD said about an hour or so after things started.
The team used two flash bangs near the house to get him to communicate. A flash bang is a small device that emits a bright flash of light and a loud bang noise that sounds like a cannon being fired. After the second flash bang, the man opened the front door and surrendered to officers peacefully at about 3:15 p.m.
Greenfield Detectives are still interviewing the people involved and executing a search warrant for the residence to determine if any crimes were committed. This man will also be evaluated for mental health treatment and will not be identified at this time.
When the incident started, officials immediately shut down Howard Street and the roads leading up to the area as well as closed Riley Park and the not-too-far-away Boys and Girls Clubs as a precaution.
They also posted the incident on social media to keep people from heading into the area.
Officials from the GPD have sent out a special thanks to the Hancock County Joint Tactical Team for helping bring a peaceful ending to what they called a “stressful situation.”
