olly18 / Depositphotos.com
An attempt to burn a home in the Town of Fond du Lac early this morning was unsuccessful, and the arsonist was arrested – but not before a SWAT team had to intervene.
Fond du Lac County Sheriff Ryan Waldschmidt reported that the owners of a home near the intersection of Townline Road and Waterway Drive were awakened by their security system’s motion detector at 2:48 this morning. An outside camera showed a suspect spray and light an accelerant on the home’s exterior, and then flee on foot.
Deputies arrived and found that the fire had self-extinguished. Quickly identifying a suspect, a secure perimeter was established around a nearby home and attempts were made to contact the suspect, who refused to cooperate and barricaded himself inside. That drew the SWAT, K9 and drone teams, as well as crisis negotiators who attempted to de-escalate the situation.
After seven hours of attempts to bring the situation to a conclusion, less-than-lethal gas and irritants were deployed within the home, hoping for a voluntary surrender. But eventually it was an armored vehicle ram breaching the home that prompted the subject to surrender shortly after 1 PM Friday.
The 32-year-old man involved was arrested, and will be booked into the Fond du Lac County jail on numerous felony charges. Nobody was injured, and more details will be released once a formal complaint is filed in Fond du Lac County Circuit Court.
Comments