LEWISTON — Police surrounded a house on Ridgewood Avenue on Thursday night when a man threatened to shoot himself and went into his garage with a gun.
Police converged on the area at about 7:20 p.m. after the man’s wife reported that he was in the garage loading his weapon.
After just over an hour, the man was taken into custody after leaving the garage and trying to get back into his house. The man was not hurt but was taken to a hospital for evaluation.
Within minutes of receiving the call, officers set up a perimeter near the corner of Ridgewood and Sabattus streets, a short distance from Val’s Drive-In. Ridgewood Street was blocked to traffic.
As more police arrived at the scene, customers were shooed from the Val’s batting cages and the business turned off the music they play over speakers.
Most people at or near the business said they had no idea there was drama unfolding until police began to arrive.
One neighbor said police came to his door and advised him to stay inside. Officers then climbed up onto his roof, he said, with rifles of their own.
By 7:30 p.m., police reported that the armed man’s wife had safely left her home. Half an hour later, the man remained in his garage while police set up a command post and prepared to call in a negotiator.
Two ambulances were parked around the corner from the scene.
Shortly after 8 p.m., police who surrounded the housereported they could see the man sitting inside his garage. Roughly 40 minutes later, he left the garage and was taken into custody.
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