Auto Theft Suspect Arrested After Fremont Motel Room Standoff
FREMONT (CBS SF) - A man was arrested Monday on suspicion of auto theft after barricading himself inside a motel room in Fremont for more than three hours, police said.
At about 4:10 p.m., police received a report of a man going through a Lexus parked in front of a Ross store at the Fremont Hub Shopping Center at Mowry Avenue and Fremont Boulevard.
The suspect fled on foot into a guest room at the All Suites Islander Motel, across the street from the shopping center, police said.
Police determined that the Lexus had been reported stolen earlier in the day.
Officers responded to the motel, where the suspect was seen looking out a window, police said. The witness who reported the incident was able to confirm that that the man inside the motel room was the same person seen going through the Lexus.
Police learned there were other people in the motel room and made contact with them. Two women and a juvenile exited the room, according to police.
The officers found the male suspect sitting on the bed inside the room, and when they approached, he held a knife to his throat, police said.
For roughly the next three and a half hours, authorities negotiated with the man to try to convince him to surrender, and adjacent hotel rooms were evacuated, police said.
The suspect eventually lowered the knife and was detained after a brief struggle, police said.
He was taken to a hospital for a mental evaluation and has been arrested on suspicion of vehicle theft, police said.
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