Pinellas County Sheriff's Deputies Arrest Armed Teenager Following a 6-hour Standoff in Dunedin, Florida 

TAMPA, FLORIDA - According to an online news report on tampabay.com, an armed teenager was arrested by Pinellas County Sheriff's Office deputies after the 18-year-old fired a gun, fled police, and then engaged in a six-hour standoff with a law enforcement tactical team.  

According to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office's media release, the 18-year-old scaled a home to gain access to the roof.  The Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies were successful in capturing the suspect safely by forcing the teenager off of the roof by firing bean bag rounds at the suspect.  At approximately 8:05 PM, the release stated that the Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies answered a call concerning "three suspicious male subjects" by Fairway Drive and Harrison Drive.  While at the scene, Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies discovered three teenagers.  Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies stated that one of the teenagers fled the scene. Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies chased after the suspect with police dogs. The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office stated the suspect then shot a gun at bystanders while he fled.  The suspect also shot himself in the thigh during the police pursuit.

The Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies reported that the fleeing suspect then climbed onto a roof of a house located along 1000 block of Michigan Boulevard.  Then law enforcement began a six-hour standoff with the suspect.  According to the media release from the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, the suspect pointed his pistol at the Sherriff's deputies, who attempted to convince the teenager to come down off of the roof.  The Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies spoke to the suspect from within an armored vehicle.

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office SWAT and negotiation crews responded to the scene of the standoff, and the Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies also brought the teen's sister to the scene to talk to the suspect.  The sister was not able to talk her brother into surrendering to the deputies.  Pinellas County Sheriff's SWAT shot bean bag rounds and used special equipment to make the teen come down off of the roof.

The Pinellas County Sheriff's SWAT team took the teen into custody and took him to a local area hospital for medical treatment of his self-inflicted gunshot wound.  Authorities announced that the teen would be brought to the Pinellas County jail once he has been medically cleared by the hospital.

According to Pinellas County Court records, the teen had an arrest warrant for violating sanctions from a 2018 juvenile court vehicular homicide case.  Law enforcement authorities reported that he was 14-years-old at the time, and he was driving a stolen Camaro.  The Camaro left the roadway at 11th Avenue S at 40th Street, hit a tree, and killed his 15-year-old passenger. 

The suspect is facing criminal charges of resisting an officer without violence, being a felon in possession of a firearm, grand theft of a firearm, and carrying a concealed firearm.  The teen also faces two counts of aggravated assault of a law enforcement officer, loitering, prowling, and two counts of aggravated assault.

The other 18-year-old is facing criminal charges of grand theft of a firearm, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and illegal carrying of a concealed firearm.  He was transported to the Pinellas County Jail.

The 16-year-old is also facing criminal charges while include carrying a concealed firearm, grand theft of a firearm, and possession of a firearm by a person under 18. He was transported to the Pinellas Juvenile Assessment Center.

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