Suspect in custody after multi-hour standoff with Hatboro police inside apartment building

Hatboro police have brought a suspect into custody, ending a more-than-11-hour standoff inside an apartment building that prompted a shelter-in-place order and closed Hatboro-Horsham public schools on Wednesday morning.

The incident began just after 9 p.m. Tuesday, when a 35-year-old Hatboro resident starting waving a gun around and pointing it at motorists. The suspect then ran into an apartment building located at York Road and Moreland Avenue, where he remained until 11:30 a.m. Wednesday.

SWAT officers and police from Montgomery and Bucks Counties were called to the scene, where they attempted to make contact with the suspect through negotiators and drones to no avail for hours, Hatboro police chief James Gardner said at a press conference Wednesday.

Hatboro police and area SWAT officers “weren’t able to even leave a message” on the suspect’s home or work phones, said Bucks County SWAT commander and Warminster police chief Jim Donnelly. From there, police tried to contact the suspect in the apartment through several speaker systems, and eventually, by deploying tear gas.

“We exhausted all options, using talking and less-lethal methods” before entering the apartment around 11 a.m., said Gardner.

SWAT officers found the suspect inside a bathroom. No shots were fired by the suspect or police.

Gardner said police had a warrant to arrest the 35-year-old on charges of assault and terroristic threat. He did not identify the suspect. Gardner also said police would be conducting a search of the residence, which could “determine additional charges.”

Hatboro’s shelter-in-place order has been lifted alongside road closures around Moreland Avenue and York Road. District schools remain closed.

Gardner said the shelter-in-place order was initiated “out of an abundance of caution.”

“He was acting in a threatening manner when he was waving a gun at innocent motorists, but we don’t know what the motive is,” he replied when asked if the protocol was necessary.

The Hatboro-Horsham School District attributed closures to “significant police activity” on social media before tweeting, “Students, staff, and family should avoid this area. We do not want students at any level walking to buses or to school. Schools are closed.”

Superintendent Scott Eveslage told The Inquirer the district received communication from Hatboro police about the standoff at the apartment complex around 6 a.m. Wednesday, but some buses were already en route to schools when district families and staff were notified of the closure via the district’s electronic notification system.

“The safety risks of the active police situation were immediately concerning. Those risks, coupled with recognizing that major road closures and shelters in place would be problematic in getting students safely to bus stop locations guided our decision to cancel all district classes,” Eveslage said via email. “Early buses who had picked up students returned those students to their respective stops and the buses were called back.”

The Wednesday school closures would not be an instructional day, said Eveslage, but students would not need to have a “make up” day, either.

Eveslage said that counseling services would be available to students who might be traumatized by the incident once schools reopen.

“We understand that the gravity of the situation and the images of the scene may have an impact on students and evoke some emotions,” said Eveslage. “We also know that students at all levels who reside near the activity may have experienced this more closely, and the situation may be particularly difficult.”