Tulsa police arrest man after 9-hour standoff

Tulsa police say a man is in custody after a nearly nine-hour standoff that started as a domestic dispute and ended with officers using tear gas to force him out of a home.

Officers were called around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday to a residence near East 38th Street and 145th East Avenue. Police say the man, a convicted felon with access to firearms, initially stepped outside during the dispute but then went back inside and refused to come out.

Because of his criminal history and the possibility that he was armed, the department’s Special Operations Team responded. Police asked nearby residents to evacuate as a precaution.

Negotiators worked for hours before officers used pepper balls and later fired tear gas into the house.

“Some pepper balls were introduced. He didn’t come out for the pepper balls,” said Sgt. Jerod Lum with Tulsa Police. “When our Special Operations Team came out, they introduced some gas into the house, and after a few attempts of that, he did come out with no incidents, no shots fired, anything like that.”

Police say the man complained of shoulder pain after his arrest and was taken to a hospital for evaluation. He will later be booked into the Tulsa County Jail.

Authorities have not released his name.