LOVELAND, CO -- Loveland police gassed and shot a man with non-lethal plastic pellets after he refused to surrender Sunday night.
Loveland police responded to a home in the 1700 Block of E. 17th Street for a verbal disturbance. When police arrived, they said Adam Hughes went into the garage and locked the door behind him and told police he had a gun.
After a brief negotiation between officers on scene and Hughes, the SWAT team was called.
Officers from the Fort Collins Police Department SWAT team, the Larimer County Bomb Squad, Loveland Fire Department, and Thompson Valley EMS responded. The area was cordoned off and people who lived nearby were evacuated.
Negotiations with Hughes didn't go well. Loveland police said they placed a portable phone in the laundry room located next to the garage. Police said they tried numerous times to get Hughes to talk to them.
When those attempts failed, police sprayed gas into the garage and demanded Hughes to surrender but that didn't work, police said. Hughes remained inside the garage, so after a period of time more gas was used.
During this time, police said they saw a red laser light coming out from under the garage door. They believed it may have been from a gun. Hughes agreed to give himself up, but when he came out of the garage police said Hughes refused to obey their commands.
Police said after giving numerous commands and being unsure if Hughes was armed or not, officers deployed two Sage rounds, striking Hughes in the lower left leg. Hughes complied and was taken into custody.
Sage rounds are less lethal rounds that are shot from a special gun. The rounds are made of hard plastic and are approximately 1.5 inches in diameter and about 2 inches long.
Hughes was searched and police said a loaded 22-caliber magazine was found on him.
Hughes was transported to McKee Medical Center for decontamination from the gas, and to be checked for his injuries from the Sage rounds. Then Hughes will be taken to the Larimer County Detention Center in Fort Collins.
Loveland police said Hughes faces several charges including felony menacing, obstructing a peace officer and resisting arrest.
