An armed domestic dispute ended peacefully in St. Davids in the early hours of Friday, June 7, with a NOTL man in custody — but not before a large police and special-unit team showed up and ordered neighbours to take cover in their basements.
Niagara Regional Police Services arrived at the home near Cannery Drive and Dominion Crescent on the evening of June 6 around 8:40 p.m. to investigate a call regarding a person with a gun.
Their investigation “revealed an adult female and an adult male got into an argument, which escalated into the male pulling a gun at the female,” police spokesperson Const. Jesse Vujasic said in a news release Friday morning.
“The female was able to exit the residence and call the police.”
Vujasic said uniformed officers, detectives, the K9 unit, negotiators and an emergency task force unit surrounded the home. A man surrendered at about 1 a.m.
No one was hurt but residents got quite a scare, however.
Online reports suggest police took no chances with the situation.
“Heavily armed police officers (between 6-8) barricade a block and are patrolling with police dogs,” one resident said on Facebook.
“The (police) have knocked on doors and advised residents to go downstairs,” the post continued.
Additional online chatter revealed more harrowing details.
“Cops with rifles are parked in my driveway to block the road. It is pretty scary,” posted another resident.
A 28-year-old man from Niagara-on-the-Lake was charged with pointing a firearm, assault with a weapon and careless storage of a firearm.
The suspect, whose name was not released in order to protect the victim, was held pending a bail hearing.
