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DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - A robbery suspect who climbed to the top of a construction crane on the Southern Methodist University campus and threatened to shoot police Monday remained on the crane hours after climbing up.
Dallas Police SWAT officers, SMU Police, and University Park Police all responded to the scene, just outside Gerald J. Ford Stadium on the south side of SMU’s campus around 11:30 Monday morning.
The crane is being used to build the Residential Commons, a future housing area near the football stadium.
Police locked down the SMU campus and a nearby shopping center around the noon hour as a precaution. The campus was already closed for Memorial Day, and only essential personnel were working according to Brad Cheves, SMU’s Vice President for Internal Affairs. Campus police told those employees to leave the area.
The man is believed to be the same suspect in an aggravated robbery which took place overnight at 1300 Commerce St.
That person stole a box truck, leading police on a pursuit that ended on SMU’s campus. Police sources say the suspect then climbed the crane, trying to get away.
The man has not been identified, and Dallas Police Sr. Corporal Melinda Gutierrez would not confirm reports of the cases being connected.
Gutierrez said the crane did not have power or air conditioning. The afternoon temperature reached 95 degrees in Dallas.
At one point, the man was getting sick inside the crane due to the heat. The man had been throwing up, and he was witnessed taking off his shirt and shoes, breaking out a window and tossing them out.
Gutierrez said the crane has a radio, and officers “were able to get radios from the construction crew to be able to communicate with him on the crane.”
The man spoke with officers through much of the day, but broke off communication in the early evening because he was reportedly afraid of going to jail.
Although the man threatened to shoot police, SWAT officers haven’t seen a gun and don’t know if he actually has one.
An ambulance has been standing by near the scene for much of the day. As the hours pass many rescue crews and officers have been rotating out in shifts to cover the scene.
Late Monday evening SMU sent out a campus update, giving directions to faculty, staff and a few remaining students on campus:
An unidentified man continues to occupy a crane at the Residential Commons construction site at SMU. Police have contained the area and advise avoiding the southeast quadrant of the SMU Dallas campus near Mockingbird and Central.
SMU and Dallas Police continue to monitor the situation. If the situation continues through the night, SMU will provide instructions to employees in the buildings near the construction site early Tuesday morning. Those buildings are the Dedman Center for Lifetime Sports, Moody Coliseum, Ford Stadium, Loyd All Sports Center and Crum Basketball Center.
Dallas Police have said they will wait as long as it takes for the man to come down. As it stands, sources say there are no plans by DPD to force the man to surrender.
Isn't there a way to bring that crane down??
Dallas Police SWAT officers, SMU Police, and University Park Police all responded to the scene, just outside Gerald J. Ford Stadium on the south side of SMU’s campus around 11:30 Monday morning.
The crane is being used to build the Residential Commons, a future housing area near the football stadium.
Police locked down the SMU campus and a nearby shopping center around the noon hour as a precaution. The campus was already closed for Memorial Day, and only essential personnel were working according to Brad Cheves, SMU’s Vice President for Internal Affairs. Campus police told those employees to leave the area.
The man is believed to be the same suspect in an aggravated robbery which took place overnight at 1300 Commerce St.
That person stole a box truck, leading police on a pursuit that ended on SMU’s campus. Police sources say the suspect then climbed the crane, trying to get away.
The man has not been identified, and Dallas Police Sr. Corporal Melinda Gutierrez would not confirm reports of the cases being connected.
Gutierrez said the crane did not have power or air conditioning. The afternoon temperature reached 95 degrees in Dallas.
At one point, the man was getting sick inside the crane due to the heat. The man had been throwing up, and he was witnessed taking off his shirt and shoes, breaking out a window and tossing them out.
Gutierrez said the crane has a radio, and officers “were able to get radios from the construction crew to be able to communicate with him on the crane.”
The man spoke with officers through much of the day, but broke off communication in the early evening because he was reportedly afraid of going to jail.
Although the man threatened to shoot police, SWAT officers haven’t seen a gun and don’t know if he actually has one.
An ambulance has been standing by near the scene for much of the day. As the hours pass many rescue crews and officers have been rotating out in shifts to cover the scene.
Late Monday evening SMU sent out a campus update, giving directions to faculty, staff and a few remaining students on campus:
An unidentified man continues to occupy a crane at the Residential Commons construction site at SMU. Police have contained the area and advise avoiding the southeast quadrant of the SMU Dallas campus near Mockingbird and Central.
SMU and Dallas Police continue to monitor the situation. If the situation continues through the night, SMU will provide instructions to employees in the buildings near the construction site early Tuesday morning. Those buildings are the Dedman Center for Lifetime Sports, Moody Coliseum, Ford Stadium, Loyd All Sports Center and Crum Basketball Center.
Dallas Police have said they will wait as long as it takes for the man to come down. As it stands, sources say there are no plans by DPD to force the man to surrender.
Isn't there a way to bring that crane down??
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