The arrest of a wanted fugitive today in Beloit became a chaotic scene as a crowd of people watching became unruly, and the house were the suspect was captured filled with gas.
The incident began about 11 a.m. Thursday when police were tipped off tht a wanted federal fugitive was in a house in the 900 block of Gerald Avenue..
Fabian Jones, 28, is known to police to be armed and dangerous, so a tactical unit was sent to the scene, Police Chief David Zibolski said during a Thursday afternoon new conference.
After Jones came out holding a bottle of liquor in one hand and an unknown object in the others, police say he refused orders to drop the objects and go to the ground.
An officer then used a non-lethal bean bag to disable Jones and bring him into custody, according to Zibolski
But that's when things went from from bad to worse.
Bean bags are a less lethal use of force Zibolski said, but the gun they are shot from looks similar to a shotgun.
That's when a growing crowd thought Jones had been shot by police. At the same time, an officer nearby, hearing the bean bag being shot, said over the radio that he had heard "shots fired."
The crowd grew unruly and attempted to get to Jones and Beloit police called for mutual aid from Winnebago County and town of Beloit for crowd control.
Two officers received minor injuries during the scuffle, Zibolski said.
To read more go to WKOW: https://wkow.com/2020/05/21/beloit-police-ask-public-to-avoid-tactile-situation-near-downtown/
============================================
Beloit police are asking the public to avoid an ongoing tactical situation in the 900 block of Gerald Avenue.
"No guns have been fired by police or suspect," authorities wrote in a Facebook post. "This is an ongoing investigation. Please avoid the area."
Officers blocked Park Avenue from Bellevue Place to Alice Avenue.
To read more go to WKOW: https://wkow.com/2020/05/21/beloit-police-ask-public-to-avoid-tactile-situation-near-downtown/