NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) – A barricade situation in Newport News that lasted 14 hours has ended with the suspect in custody, police confirmed Friday at noon.
This came after police said he had fired multiple rounds in the direction of officers earlier Friday morning and after they had made “continued attempts” to persuade the man to surrender peacefully.
Police were able to take 30-year-old Rakie Ramon Singleton into custody just before noon on Friday.
Singleton has been charged with several crimes including: malicious wounding, use or display of a firearm in commission of a felony, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and willfully discharging a firearm in a public place.
“Without the help of our fellow law enforcement partners, we’re not sure how this would have ended,” said Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew in a statement. “Thank you also to our own team, who worked long and hard for a peaceful resolution to a stressful situation and for their professionalism through the incident. I would also like to thank the citizens of our community for their patience and understanding.”
It all began around 10 p.m. Thursday night, when Newport News Police responded to reports of a shooting in the 400 block of Turlington Road at the Newport Commons Apartments. When officers arrived, they found a man outside suffering from a gunshot wound. Police said he was taken to a local hospital “with injuries that do not appear life-threatening.”
Police said a possible suspect was barricaded inside an apartment. The police tactical unit was mobilized.
While 10 On Your Side was on scene Friday morning, a State Police armored vehicle arrived on scene.
WAVY’s KaMaria Braye was there as State Police on loud speakers tried to get the person to come out of the apartment. They were calling the suspect “Red.”
At 11:30 a.m. Friday, WAVY’s Andy Fox reported that police shot tear gas into the housing unit, on the second floor. He could hear officers yelling “Mr. Singleton drop the weapon. Come outside with your hands in the air.“
Just before noon, he reported hearing the sound of more tear gas being shot into the backside of the apartment. Moments later, officers went inside the apartment and then came outside with the suspect. He was put into an ambulance.
The suspect wouldn’t come out, so the police went in.
You could see SWAT members going up to the second floor and then they opened fire. Not with bullets, but with a tear gas substance.
SWAT was behind bulletproof armor as they ascended.
There was a loud bang, and then you could see the smoke billowing out from the tear gas.
Roman Bruce smelled it.
“We heard the bangs, then the tear gas flying all over the place that was intense in of itself,” Bruce said.
This followed hours of police patience calling to the suspect to come out.
This was one of the call-outs.
“Mr. Singleton. This is Newport News Police. Let us help you out. Drop the weapon now and let us help you out. Drop the weapon, come outside, hands in the air.”
Police said that earlier in the morning, the suspect actually fired on police down below.
That’s when Leon Gray went inside.
“He was firing on them,” Gray said. “When the shooting started, that’s when I went in the house. As a matter of fact, I was up half the night waiting for this to be over, and then I wake up at 11 a.m., and they are still going at it.”
Everyone was inconvenienced, like Rea Wilkinson, who was trying to get to a concert in Baltimore. She couldn’t get to her car, so she went to Plan B.
“We are completely blocked out,” Wilkinson said. “What am I going to do? I got to get an Uber at the corner then get a rental car.”
In the end, the tear gas from front and back of the apartment did the trick.
The suspect, who has still not been identified by police, except for calling him Mr. Singleton, gave up.
You can see the phalanx of officers going through the ground floor door.
They brought the suspect out.
It appeared he was brought out by officers holding each arm and leg and then placing him on the ground.
He was put in a gurney, appeared to be smiling and talking to the officers, and then put in an ambulance.
You could see the broken glass in the upstairs apartment that was the center of police attention for nearly 14 hours.
Bruce gives great credit to police. Multiple agencies were at the scene, including Newport News Police, the Hampton Police Division, York-Poquoson Sheriff’s Office and Fire Department, Virginia State Police and the FBI.
“I was very impressed how they handled the whole situation,” Bruce said. “It was very long, but they handled it well.”
