REGINA – Two people are facing a number of weapons charges after the SWAT team cordoned off an east end neighborhood Tuesday.
Police initially responded around 12:30 p.m. to reports of two people getting into a car in the North Central with a gun.
Shortly after, police were called to a home in the 1000 block Athol Street for reports of a break and enter.
According to officers, an armed man and woman who were both wearing masks robbed a resident of prescriptions drugs and money.
After evading police, an investigation led officers to a home along the 400 block of Froom Crescent.
Dozens of police blocked off the area several hours and the SWAT team and crisis negotiators were brought in after attempts to contact the suspects inside the house failed.
The situation was not only tense for officers but many people living in the area.
Resident Chris Ryan said he was frightened when officers in his backyard told him to go to his basement for safety reasons.
“Like seeing two snipers in your backyard, (I thought) this felt pretty serious!”
In these situations, officers say they relay what information to residents they can.
However, Inspector Trevor Ewart who was the incident commander on scene, said safety of potential victims, the public, officers and even suspects involved is the first priority.
“Everything is dynamic and things change in a matter of seconds,” he explained. “What happens now could change in five seconds from now.”
Specialty units, like the SWAT team or Explosive Disposal Unit, are specifically trained for scenarios like an armed barricade or hostage situation.
Officers can resort to special equipment but say technology can also work against their efforts, like when bystanders text or share information on social media.
“If their positions are given away it compromise what they are doing and they have to alter what they are doing, which may have an adverse effect on the situation itself.”
So while the situation may be fascinating to some, or alarming to others, the public is asked to have patience and give the trained officers room to defuse the situation.
After several hours, three people surrendered to police, and one was later released without charges.
Kristen Ashley Allard, 32, and Justin Derek Prat, 21, both face a number of charges including break and enter and disguise with intent to commit an indictable offense.
The pair both made their first court appearance Wednesday.
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