UPDATE 7:28 p.m.: 48-year-old Michael B. Parham, of Pine Mountain, Ga., was taken into custody Tuesday by Winfield Police following an hours-long standoff at a motel.
Chief Robbie DeLong said the incident began when police were called to Econo Lodge for a battery report. Parham was accused of battery involving an Econo Lodge employee that occurred just outside the motel.
Police had previously been to Econo Lodge and made contact with Parham in regard to erratic behavior, but none that had escalated to the level of Tuesday’s incident, DeLong said.
Parham would not come out of his room and refused to speak with police officers. At one point, he pulled a curtain back, brandished a knife and tapped it against the glass.
An evaluation of the situation led to police contacting the regional SWAT team. They arrived and utilized various tactics to get Parham to exit.
Eventually, entry was made to the room and Parham was taken into custody without further incident. Police are still trying to determine how and why Parham had arrived in Winfield and the motel.
Parham is currently in the Cowley County Jail in Winfield.
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UPDATE 6:25 p.m.: SWAT made entry according to a witness in the area who spoke with Cowley Post. Shortly thereafter, radio traffic from the scene indicated a subject was in custody.
No injuries were immediately reported. A male subject was then being prepared for transport from the scene.
Winfield Police Chief Robbie DeLong confirmed police had a barricade situation at the motel with a person for whom they had an arrest warrant.
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Winfield Police and other law enforcement personnel were at the Econo Lodge in Winfield for an apparent stand-off situation Tuesday afternoon.
A subject was refusing to leave a room, according to radio traffic.
The incident began sometime after noon according to radio traffic. Officers and regional SWAT team members had a heavy presence on the property.
A sniper could be seen at the motel, in the 1700 block of Main in Winfield, with his gun trained on an area of motel’s second level.
As of 4:50 p.m., no injuries had been reported and incident remained unresolved.
Above photo of the scene by Brett Coplen for Cowley Post.
