NEW DETAILS: Barricaded man at Longview gas station had possible ‘mental episode’

LONGVIEW, Texas ( KETK ) – Following an hours-long standoff at a Longview gas station, a man who barricaded himself in a bus was found dead of a “self-inflicted injury.”

According to the Longview Police Department, at approximately 3:20 a.m. officers responded to a local gas station in the 300 block of South Eastman Road for a subject refusing to leave. Officers reported that a privately owned bus arrived to the gas station on Monday evening and the occupant had been asked to leave at approximately 10 p.m., gas station staff called for police assistance around 3 a.m. because the subject had not left.

According to officials, Longview PD officers contacted the male occupant of the bus and learned that he had a handgun. A family member of the occupant in Florida told police that they have experienced similar behavior in the past and that it could have been a “mental episode,” authorities said.

The Longview PD said that they continuously attempted communication throughout the morning, both by police and family members, but found no progress was being made. Officials said that around 8 a.m. Longview Police SWAT deployed non-lethal gas “in an attempt to have the suspect exit the bus,” however there was no response.

According to the police department, after there was no response the police entered the bus and found the occupant dead from an apparent self-inflicted injury.

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