SAN DIEGO — A 10-year-old Southcrest boy who became violently out of control during a family fight holed up in a shed behind his home with a shotgun on Thursday and fired two shots at responding patrol officers, prompting a SWAT standoff that ended with his arrest.
No injuries were reported as a result of the volatile domestic dispute in the 4000 block of Boston Avenue, according to San Diego police.
The events that led to the confrontation began about 9:15 a.m., when a family member made an emergency call to report that the boy was in a state of emotional crisis, behaving in a threatening manner and had grabbed a hammer and a knife.
Officers arrived in the neighborhood east of state Route 15 and south of National Avenue to find that the child had gone into an outbuilding behind his home and armed himself with a shotgun, SDPD public-affairs Lt. Shawn Takeuchi told reporters.
As the patrol personnel approached the shed, the boy fired twice in their direction, missing them, Takeuchi said.
At that point, police officials sent in a special weapons and tactics team to take positions around the home and evacuated neighboring houses.
Officers then spent about 90 minutes calling out to the boy to disarm himself and surrender.
Shortly after 11 a.m., the boy emerged from the shed -- which reportedly contained a cache of shotgun rounds -- and walked into his home, then appeared minutes later at his front door with his hands over his head. Officers took him into custody without further incident.
The nature of the family problem that led to the standoff was unclear.
10-year-old boy surrenders after firing shotgun at officers in Southcrest
The standoff lasted nearly 90 minutes before the boy was arrested.