Long Beach Standoff Over, Arrested Shooter Dies In Hospital

UPDATE: 4:20 a.m. EST Thursday — The unidentified suspect who was shot during a two-hour-long standoff with the police in Long Beach, California, on Wednesday, died after he was taken to a local hospital, according to CBS Los Angeles.

In an attempt to subdue the suspect, who had threatened to “blow up the federal building” in downtown, the police initially said they had used non-lethal rounds. However, when the man was unresponsive after being taken into custody, the police admitted that real bullets were fired.

Although police has refrained from releasing the name of the suspect, the vehicle the man was driving at the time was traced back to Donald McFarland, a resident of Oregon who has a long criminal history in Oregon and Washington states. It remains unclear if the dead suspect was driving a stolen vehicle.

Original story:

California police have arrested the armed man who was in a standoff with them near Long Beach City Hall on Wednesday, after he threatened to blow up a federal building.

The standoff started at 4 p.m. local time (7 p.m. EST) after a hysterical woman called the police, informing them her husband was armed with a gun and was threatening to “blow up the federal building” downtown, local newspaper Press Telegram reported.

Soon after being tipped off, the police discovered the vehicle driven by the suspect — a white Chevy van — parked near the 300 block of W. Ocean Boulevard, Long Beach. A police patrol car pulled up behind the van, an officer got out and pointed a gun at the van. Simultaneously, he began warning pedestrians nearby to clear the area.

The SWAT team was called in as the police started negotiating with the suspect, repeatedly ordering him to the drop his weapon and surrender. The suspect refused to do so.

Long Beach City Hall went into lockdown. The Glenn M. Anderson Federal Building was at the corner of Ocean Boulevard and Magnolia Avenue, just west of the place where the standoff was happening. The police were unable to determine if the suspect had an explosive device on him at the time of the standoff.

The incident ended around 6 p.m. local time (9 p.m. EST) when the SWAT team rushed toward the man’s van and overpowered the suspect. Police fired at the suspect and a K-9 police dog helped bring him down. It is unclear if the bullets used by the police were less-than-lethal.

The suspect was injured while being taken into custody, but the nature and extent of his injuries were unknown, NBC Los Angeles reported.

The unidentified suspect who was taken into custody after 2-hour-long standoff was transported to a local hospital by Long Beach Fire, according to CBS Los Angeles.

Long Beach City Mayor Robert Garcia took to Twitter to provide latest updates and keep the residents informed of the situation. Garcia was present inside the Long Beach City Hall at the time of the standoff. After the City Hall went into lock down, he tweeted assuring that all the people inside the building were safe. After barricading the suspect, all the members of City Hall were escorted out of the building by the police.

The standoff was also captured from a helicopter flying over the scene.