Melcroft man fatally shot after raising gun at police
State police said a standoff in Melcroft ended when the suspect was shot and killed late Tuesday afternoon.
After several hours of negotiations, the man, who has not yet been identified, came out of his home, said Trooper Robert Broadwater. Once outside, he raised a gun at police, who fatally shot him, Broadwater said.
“They acted appropriately to handle the situation,” Broadwater said of emergency responders. “This is not the outcome we wanted at all. We wanted a peaceful resolution.”
Earlier in the day, the man fired shots through a door at troopers responding to his Pine Slope Road home in Saltlick Township.
Broadwater said one trooper was grazed by something, but police are not sure if it was wood fragments from the door or shrapnel from a bullet. Broadwater said the trooper did not require medical treatment.
The man remained inside the home, and the state police Special Emergency Response Team was called to assist with negotiations.
Broadwater said police were not familiar with the man, and have not dealt with him in the past. Police were initially called to the home for a report of a domestic disturbance. The alleged victim of the disturbance, a woman, escaped the home to call 911, Broadwater said.聽
Around 10:30 a.m., troopers responding to that 911 call requested assistance, Broadwater said.