Driving Violation Starts Standoff

A police attempt to pull over a car for reckless driving Friday afternoon led to a standoff with a man claiming to have explosives, King County police said.

The motorist refused to stop for county officers, instead driving to his house and barricading himself inside, police spokeswoman Joanne Elledge said.

Gunshots were heard inside the house shortly after the standoff began, Elledge said.

The man’s girlfriend was inside the house for part of the standoff before coming out on her own accord, Elledge said.

She was arrested for rendering criminal assistance after telling police that her boyfriend was no longer in the house, Elledge said.

Elledge said police negotiators tried to contact the man but that he refused to answer them. The woman has also been uncooperative, she said.

A SWAT team surrounded the house in the Fairwood-Renton area of unincorporated King County, Elledge said. A work crew from Puget Power cut off electricity after police learned the man might have a police scanner.

The man has an extensive criminal record and police have been called to the house on numerous occasions for a variety of reasons, Elledge said.