A four-hour stand-off with a suicidal man, who was allegedly armed with a gun, ended Monday afternoon after police found the man dead in a home in Blackfalds.
At about 3 p.m. the RCMP’s Emergency Response Team responded to a call about a 36-year-old man who was hold-up in a home on Parkway Drive.
At about 7 p.m., the police used a loud-speaker outside the home to try to coax the man out of the row-house in the new neighbourhood.
“Come out of the house with your hands up. Make sure there’s nothing in your hands. We’re not here to harm you, we’re here to help you,” an officer announced to the man.
The officer spoke for about 15 minutes before police entered the building and found the man dead from self-inflicted wounds.
“It’s really unfortunate when this happens,” said Red Deer City RCMP Cpl. Kathe DeHeer.
An investigation will be done to determine when he died.
During the stand-off people were not allowed to return to their homes on the street. People in nearby homes were either evacuated or told to stay in their basements for safety.
A few residents waited in their vehicles on a nearby street. Others went to Blackfalds Community Hall where police told them they could wait.
One neighbour suspected the man lived in a home where a couple had been having several loud arguments.
“On Canada Day, the whole street pretty much heard them. In this little area, it was pretty common knowledge they fought,” said the neighbour who did not want to be identified.
On Monday, arguing was heard around noon, according to another neighbour.
szielinski@www.reddeeradvocate.com