Police take armed man into custody, find weapons in home

By KATU News Published: Dec 14, 2012 at 12:44 PM PDT Last Updated: Dec 14, 2012 at 1:21 PM PDT

PORTLAND, Ore. - Portland Police responding to reports of an armed man who had fired a gun inside a Southeast Portland home and was hallucinating said they found eight weapons and ammunition inside a residence Friday morning.

A man with a gun surrendered outside the home and was taken into custody but police said he was not arrested and may have mental health issues. He was not identified and police said he was taken to the hospital for a mental health evaluation.

Police said they responded to the home, located in the 3300 block of Southeast 84th Avenue, just before 2 a.m. Friday after the man's roommates reported he had fired a gun about 30 minutes before they called police. No one was injured.

The man's roommates met officers outside the house when they arrived. Police said they tried to call the man inside the home by phone but he would not answer. Police said they determined the man was not firing towards the outside of the house or threatening anyone.

"Based on the man being alone in the residence and officers not having any contact with him, the decision was made to walk away from the residence and contact the man at a later time," police said in a press release. "One officer remained in the area to monitor the situation and over the next hour, several shots were heard from inside the house but none were fired outside the house."

But at 4 a.m., police said the man ran out of the house to a home across the street. Residents of that home called police to tell them the man said there were intruders in his home.

More officers arrived and gave the armed man commands to walk towards them. "An officer could see the man holding a handgun in his right hand and police gave him commands to put the gun on the ground," police said. "The man complied and continued to follow police commands until he was safely taken into custody."

Once in custody, police said the man thanked officers and asked them to catch the intruders in his home. He was then taken to a hospital for a mental health evaluation, police said.

Police found five rifles, two handguns and one shotgun inside the residence, along with "a significant quantity" of ammunition. Police did not say if any intruders were in the house.

Police found bullet holes in the walls of the home but said there was no evidence any of the rounds made it out of the home.

"The Portland Police Bureau continues to respond to a number of calls for service related to people struggling in a mental health crisis," police said in their press release.

From Portland Police:

Help is available for people struggling with a mental health crisis or suicidal thoughts. Cascadia Behavioral Healthcare has an urgent walk-in clinic, open from 7:00 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., 7 days a week. Payment is not necessary.

If you or someone you know needs help with suicidal thoughts or is otherwise in an immediate mental health crisis, please visit Cascadia or call 503-963-2575. Lines for Life is available 24 hours a day at 503-972-3456.