A man armed with a pair of knives threatened officers outside Arlington police headquarters Wednesday evening, police said.
The incident happened just before 5 p.m., outside the entrance to the police department on 14th Street N. in Courthouse.
“The suspect approached officers outside the police department, brandished two knives, pointed them towards the officers in a threatening manner, advanced towards them and made a statement about the officers killing him,” said ACPD spokeswoman Ashley Savage, who noted that the information is preliminary.
“An officer deployed a Taser which did not incapacitate the suspect. The suspect did not comply with the officer’s commands and continued to brandish the knives in a threatening manner,” Savage continued. “The officers created distance and deployed a second Taser which incapacitated the suspect and he was taken into custody. He was treated on scene by medics and charges are pending.”
Police vehicles could be seen speeding towards the scene as the incident unfolded. Police and sheriff’s deputies blocked 14th Street N. to traffic while the suspect was treated and detectives documented the scene.
Savage said officers demonstrated restraint in using non-lethal force while facing down a potentially deadly threat.
“Based on the information we have at this time, our officers showed great restraint in safely resolving a dangerous encounter with an armed suspect to protect the safety of the community, officers and the involved individual,” she told ARLnow.