One Dead After Standoff In Vermillion

by Breanna Fuss, Reporter
December 25, 2012 3:09 PM


A Vermillion man died Tuesday night after a 12-hour standoff with police. According to the Vermillion Police Department, it all started around 1:30 a.m. when the man’s wife called 911 reporting a domestic dispute.

When the call came in, it was nothing out of the ordinary, a domestic assault. But police quickly learned it was much more than that. 

"Investigating officers quickly determined that there was an individual inside the home who was armed,” said Vermillion Police Chief Matthew Betzen.

Not only that, but Betzen said they learned the suspect was holding his two children hostage. Authorities quickly evacuated the area around the home near S. Crawford Road and Main Avenue.

“We made contact with the subject to begin negotiation with him,” said Betzen.

After three hours of negotiation, the suspect let his children go unharmed.

“At about 4:30 a.m. the subject released his two children and they were safely escorted from the area,” Betzen said.

Betzen said they continued to talk with the suspect to try and get him out of his home safely. But just before 10:30 a.m., negotiators lost all contact with the man. And while authorities were waiting, they were planning ways on how they could enter the home.
 
“At about 1:30 p.m. we had the appropriate resources available so we could safely approach the residents,” said Betzen.

It was then, that Betzen said, officers found the suspect dead in his home with what investigators believe to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. And even though the children got out safe, Betzen said it was a sad ending to a long day.

The Vermillion Police Department has not released the identity of the suspect because the investigation is still ongoing.