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Suspect Dies Following Eight Hour Standoff with Police in Ashe County

A standoff between a suspect and numerous local law enforcement agencies ended during the early hours of Thursday morning with the death of the unnamed suspect.

“At approximately 6:00 pm on January 15, our 911 center received information related to a welfare check in the Fleetwood area. Just before arriving on scene, Ashe County Deputies were shot at multiple times. Phone calls and communication from the suspect indicated he wanted to cause harm to any law enforcement individual,” said Ashe County Sheriff B. Phil Howell in a statement. 

After approximately eight hours the situation ended with a deceased male suspect located at the scene. All officers, first responders and support personnel were unharmed even though law enforcement was fired upon multiple times during the incident.

Local and state agencies from all around joined together during the standoff that resulted in multiple shots during the entire saga. The Ashe County Sheriff’s Office, West Jefferson Police Department, Jefferson Police Department, North Carolina Highway Patrol, State Bureau of Investigation, Watauga County Sheriff’s Office, Boone Police Department, Alleghany County Sheriff’s Office, Wilkes County Sheriff’s Office & the Appalachian State University Police Department came together to pool resources for the situation.

Ashe Medics, West Jefferson Volunteer Fire Dept., Fleetwood Volunteer Fire Dept., Warrensville Volunteer Fire Dept. and Watauga EMS were also on scene for assistance as needed. 

“We immediately requested the State Bureau of Investigation to conduct a full investigation into the matter which is standard procedure for the Ashe County Sheriff’s Office,” Howell said.