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Manuel Rivas (right) was arrested after a more than 5-hour standoff that ended when tear gas was shot into his apartment. Sunday’s incident started when SPPD Officers responded to a call of an armed man.
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SPPD: Hours long standoff ends when suspect’s home pepper sprayed
May 04, 2016
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
The report of a man with a gun led to an hours-long standoff Sunday at a Santa Paula apartment complex where after deploying pepper gas the suspect was finally arrested.
According to Santa Paula Police Detective-Sgt. Cody Madison, the May 1 incident started about 11:55 a.m. when officers responded to the 300 block of South Steckel Drive for a report of a subject with a gun.
When officers arrived they spotted a man who matched the description of the suspect, later identified as Manuel Rivas, 48, of Santa Paula.
“Rivas refused to comply with officers commands and ran into a apartment,” and Madison said the SPPD contacted the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department for mutual aid assistance.
Rivas went from refusing to comply with then refusing to come out of the apartment he fled to.
“Rivas refused to exit the residence and due to the situation SPPD SWAT responded,” and upon their arrival Madison said the VCSD personnel was released, including a Ventura County Sheriff’s Air Unit that had also responded to the barricade for support.
The SPPD issued a statement on their Facebook page urging people in the adjacent neighborhoods to stay inside, keep their doors and windows closed while cautioning others to avoid the area.
Negotiations between officers and Rivas commenced but after several hours Madison said “It was apparent Rivas was not responding to negotiations…due to his refusing to exit,” and not follow the request of officers to exit the decision was made to use OC (oleoresin capsicum) pepper gas.
The pepper gas was shot through the window of the second story apartment about 5:30 p.m. and shortly thereafter Rivas excited and surrendered to officers. He was arrested without further incident.
Madison said a search of the apartment was conducted “and no firearm was recovered,” where Rivas — a documented gang member on active parole and PROS for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm —had barricaded himself.
Rivas was taken to Santa Paula Hospital and treated for an injury sustained from police tear gas and another undisclosed existing health condition. After being released from the hospital, Rivas was taken to Ventura County Main Jail where he is being held without bail.
No one was taken hostage during the barricade, police said.
Madison said Rivas was arrested for a parole violation, obstruction of a police officer, possession of a controlled substance and possession of a smoking device. “The Santa Paula Police Department,” said Madison, “would like to thank the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department for their assistance in this incident.”
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Santa Paula Police stayed outside the fence covering other officers while a man that barricaded himself for hours inside his Steckel Drive apartment finally surrendered to the SPPD SWAT team. |
