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LAPLACE — An incident involving a man who fired a gun inside a LaPlace business, fled the scene, then barricaded himself inside his Ridgefield Drive home ended peacefully Wednesday night with no injuries.

The man surrendered to officers and was taken for medical treatment at a local hospital. The man’s identity has not yet been released because charges are pending.

Sheriff Mike Tregre praised all officers who worked this incident. “This was a total team effort by several divisions,” he said, “but I have to give tremendous credit to our crisis negotiators and SWAT and SPEAR officers who were instrumental in de-escalating this situation.”

He also thanked the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office for the use of its robotic camera.

Residents of Ridgefield also contributed to this successful outcome, Sheriff Tregre said.

“I want to thank the area residents who fully cooperated with officers with instructions to stay inside of their homes or were told to evacuate their home during the duration of this standoff,” he said.

At about 4:15 p.m. on Wednesday, officers responded to a local business in reference to an irate former employee firing a gun inside the business. Upon arrival, officers learned the male subject entered the restaurant and began yelling at personnel. The man pulled out a gun and began waving it towards employees and customers. The subject then slammed the gun on a counter, and the gun discharged. The subject then fled the scene. Customers and employees inside the business were not injured. Shortly after the incident, about 5 p.m., officers located the subject barricaded inside his residence in the 1400 block of Ridgefield Drive.

Crisis negotiators arrived on scene, and patiently talked to the man for the next five hours to de-escalate the situation for a peaceful surrender. During the standoff, officers also used drones and robots to assist in clearing the residence. The man came out of the house willingly and surrendered around 10 p.m.
During the standoff, some of the surrounding homes were evacuated for safety. The area of Ridgefield and Belle Alliance drives was closed. No one in this area was injured.