Man arrested after standoff near Oakdale high school

KSTP

[anvplayer video=”5062620″ station=”998122″]

A man is in custody after a standoff near a high school in Oakdale Monday evening.

According to Oakdale Police, officers responded to reports of shots fired at about 2:40 p.m. in the 900 block of Greenway Avenue North, just across the street from Tartan High School.

A group of heavily armed law enforcement officers was seen by a KSTP crew at the scene going in and out of the nearby apartment complex.

Police said officers at the scene found a 32-year-old man "in crisis" screaming from a third-floor window of that apartment complex. After officers talked with the man, negotiators were called to help with the situation.

Oakdale Police said the man then pointed a gun at officers and fired at them, and officers from Oakdale Police, Woodbury Police and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office returned fire. Fortunately, nobody was hit by any of the gunfire, police said.

Eventually, negotiators got the man to surrender and he was taken into custody. He was then taken to a hospital for treatment of minor injuries from broken glass and will later be booked into Washington County Jail, police said.

[KSTP/Callan Gray]

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension will investigate the incident, police said.

A spokesperson for the school district told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS, "There was an incident at a residence near Tartan High School during afternoon dismissal. The students who ride buses left safely on the buses. Any remaining students and staff were brought inside and are still there until the Oakdale PD gives the all-clear."

The district then said, at about 4:50 p.m., remaining students and staff "were allowed to leave using safety measures in place. Oakdale Elementary was also affected and their dismissal was delayed for approximately 45 minutes."

Police tape surrounding the apartment building came down around 6:20 p.m., but there is still no word from law enforcement on what happened.