DETROIT – A man is in police custody Monday night after an eight-hour standoff at Kensington and Harper avenues on Detroit's east side.
The strange circumstances of the standoff involved a dog, a Rolex and a gun.
Police said mental illness was likely a factor.
The house is a mess and windows are busted out after police threw tear gas canisters inside. But new information has emerged that the man who barricaded himself inside the home has a mental illness.
Officials said the man hadn't slept for several days, was drinking and was grieving the loss of his mother. Those factors combined could have contributed to the standoff.
"He wanted us to come down there so that he could come out, and he won't be scared, and he won't get shot," Belinda Bailey, the man's aunt, said.
Bailey said her nephew is bipolar and schizophrenic.
"He's not a bad person," Bailey said. "Sweet as he can be. But when that issues comes on him, that illness, it's a different story."
On Monday, the man's actions were directed at Detroit police officers.
The incident started Sunday, when the man's dog got into his neighbor's yard. As a peace offering, he gave his neighbor a Rolex. Hours later, he changed his mind and went back with a gun to get the watch back.
His neighbor handed it back, but then called 911. When police arrived, they said the man started acting erratically, busting out windows and throwing things. After the SWAT team arrived, the man even threw a large television at their truck.
"One shot was fired, one of our SRT members believed that the shot was fired in their direction," Detroit police Chief James Craig said.
Police said 40 tear gas canisters were fired inside, but didn't force the man out.
Eight hours after the standoff started, the man walked out with his arms up. Craig said this incident is an example of the drastic need for better mental health care.
"If a person's not treated with a mental illness, invariably what happens is they commit criminal acts, so then they're arrested," Craig said. "That's not how it should work."
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