BARNEGAT – Residents were issued an unusual advisory Wednesday night by the Barnegat Police. Instead of a flash flood, power outage or traffic heads up, they received a “Shelter in Place” alert via Nixle for the area of Cape Cod Ave. The alert was sent on July 26 at 8:26 p.m.
It stemmed from a report of a dispute that Barnegat Police responded to at 7:20 p.m. in the Ocean Acres section of Barnegat. Following an investigation, officers tried to place a 48-year-old male under arrest, but he refused to leave his home, locked himself inside and threatened to come outside with a firearm.
After determining that there was no one else inside the home, police quickly secured the scene and issued the Nixle alert advising residents in the area to shelter in place.
Early reports of the incident on app.com noted a heavy police presence in the area, multiple roads being shut down and a SWAT team on site.
Police continued to try and communicate with the man in order to safely bring him under arrest. After almost six hours of dialogue between police and the subject, he finally surrendered and was taken into custody. He was transported to Southern Ocean Medical Center and charged with obstructing the administration of law.
Police recovered three handguns, a shotgun, a 9mm carbine, multiple edged weapons and around 3,000 rounds of ammunition from the residence.
Assistance during the standoff came from the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, Ocean County Regional SWAT Team, Ocean County Sheriff’s Department, Stafford Township Police Department, Barnegat First Aid Squad and MONOC.
Barnegat Police thank the residents of Cape Cod Ave. and the surrounding area who were extremely cooperative with law enforcement during the incident.
At 1:22 a.m., Barnegat Police issued another Nixle alert saying police activity had concluded in the area of Cape Cod Ave. and that it was safe to return to normal activity.
According to the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management, the term Shelter in Place means to “remain in your home or workplace during an emergency, and protect yourself there.”
