carlballou/iStockBy IVAN PEREIRA, MEREDITH DELISO and MORGAN WINSOR, ABC News
(AUSTIN, Texas) — An hourslong standoff between authorities and a suspect holed up with hostages in a suburb of Austin, Texas, ended Monday morning. Three police officers were shot inside the home while responding to a 911 call about a domestic disturbance the previous day.
Three people related to the suspect were being held hostage inside the house in Cedar Park, hours after Sunday’s shooting. Two of the hostages were released earlier Monday morning before the suspect and the last hostage exited the home “peacefully,” according to a tweet from the Cedar Park Police Department.
“The scene will continue to be active for quite a while as we investigate,” police added.
The incident began on Sunday afternoon, shortly after 3 p.m. local time. A man in his mid-20s had kicked down the door of his mother’s home and was “acting very aggressive,” according to Mike Harmon, interim police chief for the Cedar Park Police Department.
Responding officers were met with gunfire inside the house. They returned gunfire, and it is unknown if the suspect was hit, Harmon said.
Following the shooting, the suspect barricaded himself inside the home with three family members, including his mother and a juvenile, Harmon said. The age of the third family member remains unknown.
Negotiators were in talks with the suspect to “bring this to a peaceful resolution,” the police chief told reporters.
“We do have a message for the suspect inside, and please take this to heart,” Harmon said at a press conference Sunday night. “We want to end this peacefully for everybody involved. For the suspect inside, for the hostages that are inside, for the officers that are on the scene, for everybody.”
“So please, if you’re listening to this, please come out and surrender yourself peacefully so we can resolve this situation tonight,” he added.
The Cedar Park Police Department has responded to the residence in the past, according to Harmon. The suspect has “some mental health issues,” he said, but did not elaborate beyond that.
The three unidentified officers who were shot were rushed to an area hospital in stable condition while the suspect remained barricaded inside the house, according to a tweet Sunday evening from the Cedar Park Police Department.
The police chief later told reporters that the wounded officers had non-life-threatening injuries and were still in stable condition.
Residents of the area were urged to stay indoors early Monday morning as the suspect remained barricaded inside the house.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott shared his condolences for the injured officers.
“Our hearts are with the police officers who were injured while protecting the Cedar Park community this afternoon,” he said in a statement.
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