Crime & Courts

APD: After 6-hour standoff, officers arrest man who threatened people with knife

A man who police say threatened pedestrians with a knife in Muldoon, then barricaded himself in his home, was arrested late Wednesday after a six-hour standoff and two deployments of tear gas, according to police.

Several people dialed 911 shortly before 3 p.m. reporting a man — later identified by police as 44-year-old Marlon Arellano — shouting and wielding a knife near the intersection of Muldoon Road and 20th Avenue, Jennifer Castro, Anchorage police spokesperson, wrote in a news release.

At one point, Castro said in the release, Arellano, who was only partially clothed, returned to his home in the 8500 block of Hidden View Court, then re-emerged unclothed, chased a juvenile and tried unsuccessfully to enter the youth's home.

About two dozen officers responded, Castro said, but Arellano had barricaded himself in his home. A SWAT team had arrived on scene by 4:45 p.m. Nearby residents were evacuated, Castro said.

Patti Layou, a spokesperson for the Anchorage School District, said school resource officers were called to the area and ultimately determined to have buses rerouted.

At about 7 p.m., after Arellano failed to respond to police attempts to make verbal contact with him, tear gas was deployed into the house and then later into a crawlspace where Arellano was hiding, Castro said. Officers took Arellano into custody without injury to him or officers, she said.

Castro said Arellano was charged with third-degree assault and attempted burglary. Additional charges may be added as an investigation continues, she said.

Tegan Hanlon

Tegan Hanlon was a reporter for the Anchorage Daily News between 2013 and 2019. She now reports for Alaska Public Media.

Jerzy Shedlock

Jerzy Shedlock is a former reporter for Alaska Dispatch News. He left the ADN in 2017.

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