TOOELE, Utah, Oct. 18, 2020 (Gephardt Daily) — A suspect is dead after a six-hour hostage standoff in Tooele that began Saturday night.
The incident started in the area of Cafe Rio at 1205 N. Main St. at approximately 9 p.m., Tooele City Police Department spokesman Lt. Jeremy Hansen told Gephardt Daily.
Police were called on a report of a protective order violation, Hansen said. Patrol officers arrived on scene and located a man matching the description provided by dispatch as well as a woman and a juvenile male.
The suspect allegedly forced the woman and the juvenile into a car, and displayed that he had a gun. At some point during the standoff, the suspect drove from the parking lot outside the Cafe Rio to the parking lot outside the nearby Costa Vida restaurant at 1197 N. Main St.
The suspect held the woman and child hostage, Hansen said, and used the woman as a shield.
Officers attempted to talk to the suspect, Hansen said, then called in SWAT teams as well as two hostage negotiators.
The suspect released the juvenile but continued to hold the woman hostage. Eventually, at approximately 3 a.m., the suspect got out of the car, with his arms wrapped around the woman, Hansen said. He then “went for” his gun, Hansen added.
Three officers fired at the suspect, who was fatally injured. Those three officers have been placed on administrative leave while the incident is investigated. The investigation will be undertaken by an outside agency, as is protocol with officer-involved critical incidents. The suspect has not been named, pending notification of next of kin.
The woman who was held hostage was transported to an area hospital with injuries that are not life-threatening, Hansen said. It’s not clear how exactly the woman was injured. The juvenile was not hurt.
No officers were injured in the course of the incident.
Gephardt Daily will have more on this developing story as information is made available.
