NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — A man is in custody in Newport News after he barricaded himself inside a residence with children for several hours.
According to a police department spokesperson, this situation unfolded just before Midnight Sunday when their officers were sent to a home on 42nd Street near Roanoke Ave. for what was described as a "domestic situation." Once they were on scene, officers learned that a man was inside the residence and might be armed.
At that point, it was determined that the incident should be escalated into a tactical situation, and the Tactical Unit and negotiators were called.
Willie Thomas lives across the street, where police spent several hours… until taking the man into custody around 3:45 Sunday morning.
“My neighbor called me up and told me not to come out because police had guns out here,” Thomas said. Thomas says he’s known the man and his family for years.
“I don’t know what went on between them, but I was very surprised! He’s always been a nice fella,” He said.
After a standoff lasting several hours, the man was eventually taken into custody without incident at around 3:45 a.m. The children who had been inside with the man were then reunited with their mother.
The spokesperson identified the man as 43-year-old Edward Dunn of Newport News.
There were no details provided by police about what led up to the situation, nor what relationship Dunn had to the children he was holding inside the house or their mother. They also didn't say if the man was actually armed.
But two people close to the situation – who wish to remain anonymous – are calling it a misunderstanding.
"The children and everybody are safe. This was not a hostage situation at all,” one person told us.
They say Dunn was not armed, and the situation started with an argument between Dunn and his wife.
The other witness told us: “Basically, it was just a disagreement between a husband and his wife. It might get a little emotional, but the kids don’t understand and thought it was more than it was.”
Dunn was charged with felony domestic violence. Police said other charges may be pending.