WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A police standoff in Luzerne County that lasted multiple hours impacted an area hospital and ended with the gunman dead.
"In all my years of living down in this neighborhood, I've never seen anything quite like this," one neighbor told 28/22 News.
"Something like this, I've never seen anything like it," Wilkes-Barre resident Jahkyi Jackson said.
What started as an attempt to serve a search warrant quickly turned into a standoff lasting multiple hours in the south side of Wilkes-Barre.
"Well, I was just driving home, and we just saw one cop car, and two cops were talking to one guy, who obviously had nothing to do with the situation, and then, within a half hour, all of a sudden it just turned into this huge situation," the neighbor explained.
Wilkes-Barre Police say when they attempted to enter the home on Barney Street, a gunman inside opened fire on them.
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No officers were injured, and they immediately called for backup.
Dozens of neighbors showed up to watch as multiple townships responded, as well as the Pennsylvania State Police Special Emergency Response Team.
"It's both shocking and not shocking, I guess, in the way the world is nowadays, how we all perceive it, so," the neighbor added.
The search warrant was being executed following a report of a physical and sexual assault victim at a local hospital Saturday evening, officials say.
PSP's SERT team used a helicopter, a drone, and a robotic canine while trying to contact the gunman inside.
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"We just saw state police with an armored vehicle rescue children and drop them off at their presumed family or guardian," the neighbor continued.
During the standoff, many surrounding streets were shut down, and access to the nearby Geisinger Hospital was impacted.
The neighbors, stunned by all they saw over the holiday weekend.
"You don't see this every day. Some of them, when they heard he was probably dead, were also shocked because it's sad it comes to that," Jackson stated.
Authorities say they entered the home after the hours-long standoff and found the gunman dead in an "Apparent suicide."
Police say the name of the victim of that reported physical and sexual assault is not being released due to the nature of the offenses.
Meanwhile, the identity of the gunman is being withheld as authorities work to notify next of kin.
