The Kansas CW | Hutchinson Standoff Suspect Arrested
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Image of the scene in downtown Hutchinson.
Photo by KWCH Photojournalist Jason Massingill
Photo by KWCH Photojournalist Jason Massingill
UPDATE:
A standoff in Hutchinson ended Thursday night at about seven o'clock. Police say the man who had been holed up in a downtown building gave up after police fired rounds of tear gas.
The man is from South Hutchinson. Police confirm his wife had recently filed for divorce. They say he had threatened to hurt himself so they tried to coax him out.
No one was hurt.
The suspect is Nathan Cunningham. He is charged with:
A judge set his bond at $500,000.
A public defender has asked to have Cunningham sent to Larned for a mental evaluation, but there's been no ruling on that.
by Kara Sewell (HUTCHINSON, Kan.)
A large chunk of Main Street in downtown Hutchinson was blocked Thursday. "It is scary because this just don't ever happen in Hutch, when you see lights and you see SWAT your saying what is going on," says Dawn Hale.
Just after noon a man entered the law office of David Holmes and took the people inside hostage. "At one time there were five individuals in there with the suspect, all five of them are out," says Police Chief Dick Heitschmidt.
The gunman remains inside the building at 11 E. Second Avenue. "They're getting ready to shut off the electricity so I decided to come out here and take a look and see what's going on," says Terry McDowell.
So, did many others. Over five hours, hundreds came and went to try and get a glimpse. "This is mind blowing to everybody that is why a lot of people are out here," says Hale.
As the standoff wore on, police pushed onlookers further back as to not agitate the man. "Hopefully they can resolve this quickly and nobody gets hurt," says McDowell.
by Chris Durden (HUTCHINSON, Kan.)
Police are trying to get an armed man out of a building in downtown Hutchinson. The standoff began early Thursday afternoon.
Police Chief Dick Heitschmidt says the man, believed to be South Hutchinson resident Nathan Cunningham, ran into the office of attorney David Holmes around 12:30.
Police immediately sealed off the area around the building at 11 E. Second Avenue. The man held several people inside the law office hostage before letting them go.
Eyewitnesses say they watched the hostages run out with their hands in the air. Police believe this may be a domestic situation but will not give any details.
Authorities in Hutchinson have blocked off the area around 2nd and Main because of the standoff. Main Street is closed to pedestrian and vehicle traffic. People gathered near the Whiteside building all day to see what was going on.
Officers from Hutchinson, the Reno County Sheriff's Office and the Kansas Highway Patrol remain on the scene, trying to talk the man into surrendering.
Eyewitness News has a crew at the scene. Expect updates on Eyewitness Newscasts, kwch.com and Twitter.
If you are there and have photos of the scene, send them to news@kwch.com.
