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Filed Under:Barricaded Suspect, Oakland, Oakland Hills, Oakland Police Department, Police Standoff, Redwood Heights

OAKLAND (CBS SF) — An armed suspect held a person hostage at a store in East Oakland for several hours before letting him go unharmed and eventually surrendering peacefully, police said early Thursday evening.

The gunman had been barricaded in a commercial building in a standoff with police for about six hours. Oakland police spokesperson Johnna Watson said that the suspect had voluntarily surrendered to officers just moments before 5 p.m.

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Oakland Deputy Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong said that the officers involved in the standoff exercised patience during the standoff.

“This is a culmination of a traumatic event,” said Armstrong.

Police also confirmed that a high-capacity firearm was recovered at the scene.

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The incident began unfolding just after 11 a.m. at the WSS athletic shoe store at 1620 High St. in between Bancroft Ave. and Bond St., Oakland police said.

The suspect is wanted in a double homicide and at least six rounds were fired into the walls of the building he was barricaded in, according to Watson. Police negotiators were talking on the phone with the suspect and were determined to “wait as long as it takes to resolve peacefully,” according to Watson.

Authorities said that a robot was also being used during the negotiations.

Oakland police at WSS shoe store in East Oakland during a standoff with an armed suspect holding a hostage, October 22, 2020. (CBS)

Police cordoned off a six-block perimeter and people in the immediate area were asked to shelter in place. Others were urged to avoid the area and use alternate routes.