For the second time in a week, Patrick County Sheriff’s deputies were involved in a standoff and shooting incident, this time at a residence on Willis Gap Road in Ararat, where one suspect is in custody, Sheriff Dan Smith said Monday.
Patrick County deputies responded to 3609 Willis Gap Road in Ararat around 8 a.m. in response to a call involving a male subject assaulting his elderly father. Senior Deputy Matt Hodges and Deputy Cameron Adkins arrived on scene and attempted to make contact with the suspect.
An elderly female answered the door, and a male subject allegedly approached her from behind and swung a baseball bat at the female as deputies pulled her from the doorway.
The suspect then allegedly barricaded himself inside the residence as the deputies got the woman to a safe location.
A standoff ensued, and deputies from the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office were called to assist, Smith said. Multiple Patrick County deputies arrived on scene and attempted to call the suspect out of the residence.
Smith alleged the suspect appeared from a barricaded, partially concealed position at a front window inside the residence, brandished a handgun, and fired at deputies through the window.
The sheriff’s office returned fire, according to Smith, who added that it was confirmed that the suspect was the only remaining occupant inside the home at the time of the shooting.
The suspect was taken into custody approximately twenty minutes later.
“As with all deputy-involved shootings, I have requested that this investigation be handled by the Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations,” Smith said in a Monday afternoon news release. Smith deferred further inquiries to the state police.
No deputies were injured, and the suspect sustained minor injuries.
The father fled the residence and went to a neighbor’s house prior to deputies arriving.
On Monday, Sept. 22, Smith reported that a Patrick Springs man was charged with attempted murder of a law enforcement officer, abduction, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, violation of a protective order, and reckless handling of a firearm, in connection with a similar alleged standoff and shooting incident.
