ST. JOSEPH, MO. — State police, along with the Buchanan County Sheriff’s department, surrounded a Motel 6 in St. Joseph Wednesday.
A suspect was reportedly barricaded after shooting a man, then shooting at responding Officers from inside of the hotel room.
Officers were dispatched to the Motel in the 4000 block of Frederick Avenue just after 8:30 a.m.
Per KCTV: Several guests were inside the motel when this happened. One man described how urgently police evacuated the building.
“He told me I need to leave my room, evacuate, I said ‘let me get dressed.’ He said ‘no, grab your wallet, go right now.'” motel guest Bob Dobson told us.
“They were very polite, but very quick. The officers came up and were like ‘you’ve got to go.'”
According to local reports, the suspect had at least one female hostage.
.@kq2 UPDATE: The scene is still active. #kq2 pic.twitter.com/cmE9nmrRzD
— Devin Renee Negrete (@devin_negrete) October 14, 2015
.@kq2 More MO HWY troopers are joining the effort at the scene. #kq2 pic.twitter.com/lVKiYVxW2k
— Devin Renee Negrete (@devin_negrete) October 14, 2015
The alleged shooting victim’s condition was unknown.
he Missouri State Highway Patrol is asking drivers to avoid I-29 northbound and southbound from the 44 mile marker to the 50 mile marker at this time. Frederick Avenue is also closed in the area. The Missouri Department of Transportation said the highway could reopen around 1 p.m.
