Grand Rapids man charged after standoff
Published 9:55 am Friday, November 14, 2014
GRAND RAPIDS — Authorities have charged a Grand Rapids man who they said led a seven-hour armed standoff with officers.
Twenty-nine-year-old Robert Williams was charged Thursday with one count of reckless discharge of a firearm, four counts of false imprisonment and one count of terroristic threats following the standoff Wednesday night.
The Itasca County sheriff said authorities responded to a 911 call from Williams’ girlfriend Wednesday night saying he was armed with a semi-automatic rifle.
The Grand Rapids police chief said Williams threatened the woman and her three daughters with the gun. They escaped through a bedroom window.
Authorities from Itasca and St. Louis counties surrounded the house. SWAT teams eventually fired tear gas into the house and police arrested Williams just after midnight. No injuries were reported.
It wasn’t immediately clear if he has an attorney.