Sheriff: Man fired gun at mental health workers, arrested after 30-hour standoff

By Web Staff

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    HILLSBORO, Oregon (KPTV) — A 55-year-old man was arrested following a lengthy standoff that began after he fired a gun at mental health workers on Friday, according to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.

Just after 9 a.m., on Aug. 20, mental health workers responded to a home in the 5400 block of Northeast Croeni Avenue to help a man, later identified as Ian Tunger, on the behalf of concerned family members. It was reported that Tunger was suffering from apparent mental illness issues.

The sheriff’s office said Tunger fired a gun at the workers, who then fled the scene and called 911. Hillsboro police officers responded and secured the area. The Tactical Negotiations Team (TNT) and Crisis Negotiations Unit (CNU) also responded and began attempting to negotiate with Tunger.

The sheriff’s office said the TNT and CNU tried numerous tactics and strategies to bring Tunger out of the house and surrender over the next 30 hours. During that time, the sheriff’s office said Tunger repeatedly wielded firearms and fired at officers on two occasions. Officers were behind armored vehicles at the time and were not injured.

After consulting mental health professionals and physicians, the TNT and CNU were able to take Tunger into custody on Saturday afternoon. Tunger was then taken to an area hospital for evaluation. He has since been released and booked into the Washington County Jail on charges of first-degree attempted assault, unlawful use of a weapon, and menacing.

The investigation is ongoing, and no additional details were released. The sheriff’s office said several members of the TNT were placed on modified duty per critical incident protocol after having been shot at from a very close range.

TNT and CNU were assisted by numerous SWAT teams from around the state, including the Oregon State Police, Salem Police Department, Lane County, Marion County, Clackamas County Sheriff’s Offices, and the Portland Police Bureau Special Emergency Reaction Team. Support teams, including the WCSO Incident Management Team (IMT), WCSO Remotely Operated Vehicle Team (ROVT), and the Salem Police drone team, assisted during the standoff as well.

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