ST. GEORGE — An altercation Thursday with possible shots fired inside of a residence in Mesquite, Nevada, led to a three-hour standoff with police, ending when a negotiator was able to coax the man out of the home to awaiting officers.
Shortly after 2:30 p.m. officers responded to a residence located on Sandbar Street in Mesquite on reports of a fight taking place inside of the home.
When they arrived, officers learned that a man inside of the home – later identified as Zachary Bartee, 35, of Mesquite – had possibly fired a handgun and pointed it at another individual, Mesquite Police Sgt. Quinn Averett said in a statement released to St. George News Thursday evening. Law enforcement also learned that Bartee had an active felony warrant for his arrest.
At that point, police secured the scene to reduce any risk of danger or injury to bystanders and residents living nearby while officers attempted to make contact with the man, and the department’s SWAT team was deployed to the area.
The Mesquite Police Department issued alerts through social media as well as text messages sent via the Nixle emergency alert system with a message that a man was barricaded inside of a home and requested that residents avoid the area.
A police negotiator was called to the scene and was able to establish communication with Bartee, dialogue that would continue for the next three hours until the suspect voluntarily walked out of the home and surrendered to police.
A few minutes before 7 p.m. officers were able to enter the residence and found that no one inside of the home was injured during the altercation.
Bartee was later transported to the Mesquite Detention Center where he was booked on the felony warrant for probation violation.
No injuries were reported to either civilians or officers, Averett said Thursday evening, adding that “all residents in the area are safe and have returned to their homes.”
The investigation into the events that unfolded inside of the residence is at the beginning stages, he said, adding that further details will be released by the department as the information becomes available.
Formal criminal charges are pending.
This report is based on statements from police or other emergency responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
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Those tattoos are creeping up towards his face. Creep being the operative word.