Following an hours-long standoff on Monday, Unified Police officers and a SWAT team arrested a knife-wielding shoplifting suspect who had barricaded himself inside a Riverton home.
UPD Lt. Brian Lohrke said the incident began when officers were called to the Shopko store near 5800 South and Redwood Road, where the suspect had allegedly threatened store employees with a knife when they confronted him about 8 a.m. Monday as he tried to walk out with unspecified items.
The man then fled, jumped into a car and sped away, but not before his license plate number was taken down by witnesses. UPD used that information to trace him to a home near 1400 West and 12900 South in Riverton.
Because of the situation, 1300 West was temporarily closed between 12800 and 13000 South, UPD said.
“When our officers [initially] approached the residence, he came out of the house. There was some sort of conversation where our officers identified themselves as police, and he asked if he was going to jail,” Lohrke said.
Before the officers could answer, however, the suspect — a 32-year-old man with a long felony criminal history — bolted back inside and locked the door behind him.
He refused calls to surrender, and SWAT was called to the scene. In the early afternoon, negotiations began seeking a peaceful resolution, Lohrke said.
Just before 3:30 p.m., police said they had taken the man into custody safely. Members of the SWAT team found the man hiding in the house, Lohrke said.