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Man in custody following Connoquenessing standoff

A man shooting an AR-style rifle outside a neighbor’s residence was taken into custody Tuesday, Oct. 3, after a standoff in his home in the Woodlands development off Prospect Road, Connoquenessing Township, officials said.

The neighbor and complainant told police that in the past week Jeffery Richard Ford, 30, had been shooting different types of firearms in the direction of her home.

Ford was charged with disorderly conduct, recklessly endangering another person and simple assault and remanded to the Butler County Prison, state police said.

His bail was set at $50,000.

According to police, state troopers were dispatched around 1:20 a.m. following reports of shots fired at the location.

His neighbor told police Ford had exited his “motor home,” firing the rifle toward her residence. After she told him she would be calling police, Ford returned to his residence, turned up the music and came outside a second time to fire another round.

When police arrived and attempted to make contact with him, Ford barricaded himself in the residence with the gun and refused to exit, ignoring all attempts of contact by state police. He shut off his cellphone and turned off the lights inside his home, according to police.

He was taken into custody by the state police Special Emergency Response Team without further incident.

A heavy police response in that area was first reported by Trooper Bertha Cazy, public information officer for Troop D, around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday. Cazy reported the incident ended at 12:30 p.m.

“One male was taken into custody without incident. More information will be released as it becomes available,” Cazy wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

Cazy said there was no threat to the public.

Around 8:30 a.m., Cazy said Hawk Road and Doe Drive were closed near the incident, and traffic was rerouted.

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