FAYETTEVILLE — Members of the Washington County Emergency Response Team spent about three hours negotiating with an armed man who barricaded himself in his home Monday.
Matthew Lerch, 34, of 1026 S. Lake Sequoyah Drive, was arrested in connection with felony aggravated assault, as well as misdemeanor third-degree domestic battery, said Fayetteville Police Sgt. Bill Phelan.
Police were called to Lerch’s residence for a domestic disturbance at 10:42 a.m. Monday. Lerch’s wife reported being involved in an altercation with her husband. The disturbance reportedly escalated, at which point Lerch fired multiple gunshots from a .45 caliber gun inside the couple’s home. Lerch’s wife escaped without injury and notified police.
“At this point, we don’t know if he fired the weapon at her or if he just fired it in the air,” said Fayetteville Police Cpl. Rick Crisman.
Officers blocked off a portion of Lake Sequoyah Drive and evacuated nearby homes.
“I got a text from a friend who said my street was closed off,” Devin Harvey, who lives just across the street, said. “At about the same time, a cop dressed up like a sniper came to my door and told me there was a standoff involving a hostage situation.”
Emergency response team members broke out windows to get into Lerch’s home, Phelan said.
“During the last hour, we just rushed in and got him,” Phelan said. “He was in a back bedroom. We did find a weapon in the home that had been discharged. No one was ever injured or shot though.”
Lerch was taken into custody about 5:15 p.m. and taken to the Washington County Detention Center.
“He’s kind of crazy,” Harvey said of his previous interaction with Lerch. “I helped him clean out his shed once and he just didn’t seem like he was all there in the head. I remember one time when the cops were called to his house for some sort of domestic disturbance.”
Phelan confirmed that officers have dealt with Lerch in the past in reference to at least one suicide attempt.