Holly MatkinPhoenix, AZ – An accused armed carjacker climbed onto a rooftop, swung from power lines, and used cable wires like a tightrope during a bizarre standoff with police earlier this month.
The incident unfolded in the area of North 7th Street and Portland in downtown Phoenix on Feb. 3, after a man who allegedly had his vehicle stolen at gunpoint one day earlier called police to report he had just spotted the robbery suspect, KSAZ reported.
“He gave me eye contact he said ‘what’s up,’ and then he kept walking and I said ‘that’s him,’ so I called the cops. [He] stole my car at gunpoint yesterday,’” the victim, identified only as “Todd,” told the news outlet.
Officers responded to the scene to find the shirtless suspect scaling rooftops and walking across overhead power lines, KSAZ reported.
Members of a SWAT team tried to negotiate with the suspect during the one-hour standoff that ensued, according to witnesses.
At one point during the ordeal, the unidentified suspect started swinging on cable wires, using them to scramble onto the roof of another building in an attempt to get away from police, KSAZ reported.
He dangled from cables as he made his way down the side of a building, at which point police fired less-lethal rounds at him and safely took him into custody, KSAZ reported.
The suspect was transported to the hospital with minor injuries and was expected to be booked into jail on unspecified charges after being medically cleared, according to police.
Phoenix Police Department (PPD) Sergeant Ann Justus confirmed that the suspect was wanted for armed robbery at the time of the standoff, The Arizona Republic reported.
Many local residents who watched the ordeal unfold later said they felt police exercised restraint and handled the situation well.
“We came home and there was a man on the roof,” one witness told KSAZ. “We didn’t know if he was armed or not.”
“It was de-escalated. No one was hurt, no one was shot,” she told the news outlet. “I didn’t see anything disrespectful, and its nice to see that in our neighborhood where there’s a lot of problems.”
Another witness told KSAZ she was “really impressed” with how police handled the standoff.
She noted officers “could have shot the guy” multiple times, but that they were patient and “waited him out.”
“They made sure he was okay. They rubber-bulleted him when it was safe, and they effectively made sure that the guy was safe,” the witness said.
