CLARKSBURG, W.Va. – A Shinnston man was apprehended by law enforcement in the Owings Hill area following a standoff with police.
Reports indicate Andrew Neal Debolt, 36, absconded from supervision due to a previous firearm conviction in the Northern District of West Virginia in December and a warrant was issued for his arrest.
On December 23 Debolt was observed by the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department on a side-by-side and was able to flee from officers, despite almost striking a cruiser.
On December 30 at 10:15 a.m. while searching for Debolt in a residence on Owings Road, an officer allegedly observed Debolt again on a side-by-side and a pursuit ensued. Debolt abandoned the side-by-side at the Owings Church and eluded police in a nearby wooded area.
Later, police received a tip that Debolt was in a residence of an associate on Shortwall Street in the Owings area of Shinnston. Supervisory deputy with the U.S. Marshal Service, Terry Moore says they were able to make contact with Debolt at the home.
“He did respond and he would not surrender himself from the upstairs of the residence, he also indicated he had a hostage on the second floor,” Moore said,”So, we requested assistance from the West Virginia State Police Hostage Negotiation Team and the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department’s SWAT team.”
Moore says the standoff began around 10:30 p.m. and ended with Debolt’s arrest at midnight without incident.
Moore adds that Debolt initiated verbal contact with police while in the upstairs of the residence.
“Mr. Debolt did not want to go back to prison,”Moore said,”So, he was talking about how he did not want to go back to prison and how he was willing to avoid that.”
Moore says negotiators kept Debolt calm and were able to convince him the best course of action was to surrender with his hands up.
Because the standoff occurred on the second floor, police used special tactics and equipment.
Debolt is being held in the North Central Regional Jail.
West Virginia State Police, Harrison County Sheriff’s Office, Morgantown Police Department, Harrison County EMS, and Shinnston Fire Department assisted in the case.