HARTFORD – A welfare check at a Sykes Mountain Avenue home on Sunday resulted in police standoff that resulted in a woman climbing out of a window to safety and police arresting a man inside without incident.
Justin Lamb, 31, has been charged with interference with access to emergency services, second degree unlawful restraint, impeding officers, resisting arrest and domestic assault.
At 4:25 p.m. on Sunday, Hartford Police conducted a welfare check at 514 Sykes Mountain Ave. after a woman did not show up to work, according to a Hartford Police news release on Monday. Her coworker told police there was a history of “safety concerns involving the woman and her boyfriend.”
When police arrived at the multi-unit rental property on Sunday, they encountered Lamb “in (an) apparent mental health crisis,” the release stated.
As police made contact with the woman through a window in the same apartment, one of three units in the building, she indicated “she did not feel safe,” according to the news release. While communicating with Lamb, police developed a plan to get the woman out of the apartment.
“A Hartford Police Department crisis negotiator responded and communicated intermittently with Lamb over an extended period,” the release stated.
Vermont State Police assisted Hartford police in response to the incident, deploying a drone along with multiple special teams, including Tactical Services, Bomb Squad and Crisis Negotiations.
“During the period of negotiations, Hartford Police continued to work to get the woman out of the apartment,” according to the release. She “eventually” climbed out a window of the apartment with assistance from police.
Hartford Fire personnel evaluated the woman and determined that she was uninjured.
“Vermont State Police executed the search warrant, and Lamb was arrested without injury,” the news release stated.
Lamb is currently being held at Southern State Correctional Facility in Springfield, Vt.
Efforts to reach Hartford Police and Vermont State Police were not immediately successful on Monday.
An individual from one of the three units of the property declined to comment on Monday morning.
During the incident on Sunday, Sykes Mountain Avenue was shut down between Lily Pond Road and Lower Hyde Park.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, contact WISE of the Upper Valley at (866) 348-9473 or visit wiseuv.org for confidential support. If you are in immediate danger, call 911.
