Subject in Pottstown Standoff in Police Custody

This evening, police escorted a man from the Logan Court Apartments in Pottstown. 

The released a statement about an incident that started early this morning with a report of a barricaded male in a Logan Court apartment. 

Meanwhile, police from Pottstown (including a canine unit), Lower Providence, Douglass, Whitemarsh, Lower Merion and Plymouth townships were at the scene. 

Apartment residents appeared shaken, upset and confused by the situation.

"He's not a bad guy," said a woman who lives in the apartment complex and called the suspect "Albert." She did not want to identify herself because, "I feel bad saying anything."

Another apartment resident, who also refused to be named, said she awoke to the sound of gunshots at 6 a.m. today.

Police and other organizations, including the Salvation Army, Central Montgomery County Special Weapons and Tactics and Montgomery County Department of Public Safety, used the parking lot of the Tyree building on the corner of Hanover and Wilson streets as headquarters.

The area was eerily quiet with a soft undercurrent of energy as roughly five officers in helmets and body armor entered the Tyree building and applied gas masks. 

Pottstown Manager Jason Bobst said police were armed with automatic rifles. 

At roughly 7:15 p.m., about 10 police officers wearing helmets, body armor and gas masks headed toward the Logan Court apartment complex.

Here's the news release issued by Pottstown Police Department Chief Mark Flanders:

At 7:35 a.m. today, the members of the Pottstown Police Department responded to a report of a subject creating a disturbance inside of the “B” Building at Logan Court Apartments (770 Logan St. Pottstown). While speaking with a witness, a gunshot was heard inside of the apartment building. Officers quickly evacuated the witness and called for assistance. Both the exact location of where the shot came from and the identity of the shooter were unknown.

Police secured the area and began evacuating persons in the immediate area. The ChesMont Emergency Response Team (CMERT) responded along with other Pottstown officers and officers from surrounding municipalities to assist with the search for the shooter.

At approximately 11:15 a.m., CMERT members began a systematic search of the inside of Building “B” for the purposes of locating the shooter or any possible victims, and evacuating the remaining residents. During the search officers were able to determine the location of the individual who had fired the shot and began the process of trying to negotiate his exit from the building. At approximately 2:37 p.m. the individual began shooting at officers from inside of his apartment. No officers or members of the public were struck by the gunfire.

Background: 

 3:45 p.m. - A helicopter was called to the scene for a medical emergency, possibly for a barricaded subject.

Pottstown School District issued the following announcement:

"Due to police action taking place today on Logan Street, streets in the vicinity have been blocked off. Parents of students who live in the area of Wilson, Airy, and Spruce, which are currently blocked bordering Logan, are requested to pick up their children at their respective schools. Parents who are not available immediately to pick up their child may make arrangements with the principal."

The announcement follows an early morning report of a subject barricaded inside an apartment on Logan Street.