Police responded to a dozen calls on Tuesday about a man walking through a Tacoma, Washington neighborhood firing shots at residences at random, reports MyNorthWest.com. The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department said that the gunman, identified as Mike McBee, 67, was holed up inside his home, heavily armed, for hours and refused to come out. Shortly before midnight, authorities reached the man and arrested him.
The gunman was moved though Tacoma’s Browns Point neighborhood in the 5800 block of 13th St. Ct. NE around 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday before barricading himself inside his home. Detective Ed Troyer warned people, including media, to stay away from the area and that his firepower was strong enough to reach helicopters.
Troyer posted to his Twitter account around midnight that no one had been hurt and that the suspect was in custody.
Suspect in custody excellent job by cries negotiators and SWAT Team! No one killed or hurt all three dogs fine twitter.com/PierceSheriff/…
— Detective Ed Troyer (@PierceSheriff) March 27, 2013
According to The Atlantic Wire, the gunman was identified by neighbors as having mental health problems and may have been drinking earlier in the day.
The elderly man was a Vietnam War veteran and former prisoner of war and was reportedly in a long running feud with his next-door neighbors.