Standoff incident leads to arrest in Moses Lake

Man arrested on robbery warrant

MOSES LAKE —No one was injured, but portions of several area streets were blocked off and residents evacuated while members of the Moses Lake Regional Tactical Response Team pursued a suspect inside a Grand Drive residence for several hours Friday afternoon.

Steven A. Curtis, 22, was later taken into custody without incident, but not before the closure of several streets and the evacuation of nearby homes. The Moses Lake Police Department said Curtis was arrested on a warrant for an alleged first-degree home invasion robbery earlier this year.

MLPD Captain Jim Jenkins said Monday that officers were notified that Curtis was in the home on the 800 block of S. Grand Drive. Jenkins said the Tactical Response Team was later mobilized after MLPD officers were notified that Curtis was in the process of arming himself inside the residence.

The Moses Lake Regional Tactical Response Team is made up of members of numerous law enforcement agencies in Grant and Adams Counties who respond to high-risk incidents.

The residents of the home were evacuated shortly after the call at 10:25 a.m., and Jenkins said residents of approximately six surrounding homes were also evacuated until the incident was resolved at 4:30 p.m.

As part of TRT protocol, Jenkins said a shot of gas was fired into the home before a search by TRT members. Jenkins said Curtis was not a resident of the home.

"It was just a matter of him failing to respond to our communications and having to go in and get him out," Jenkins said of the hours-long incident.

Portions of Grand Drive, as well as Hawthorne Drive and Lark Avenues were blocked off from about 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. during the incident.

Adjacent residents provided their homes and water to TRT members during the incident, and Jenkins said the officers appreciated and were thankful for their cooperation.