Man dies after barricading himself inside north Phoenix Quiktrip
PHOENIX - Police are investigating a barricade situation at a north Phoenix QuikTrip that has turned deadly.
According to Phoenix Police, the incident began at around 2 a.m. on March 14 when they started receiving calls of a man who was on Interstate 17 between Cactus and Peoria Roads.
Officers responded to the scene and the man then ran off the freeway and into the QuikTrip near Interstate 17 and Cactus Road.
Police followed the man into the convenience store and after a confrontation, the man locked himself inside a storage room.
Officers cleared the store of customers and began negotiating with the suspect.
"There was no confrontation. Everybody exited the [QuikTrip] pretty quick. Some people inside observed the man with the weapon," said Sgt. Rob Scherer with the Phoenix Police Department.
At some point, police say a fire started inside the storage room, but the store's water suppression system put out the flames.
Negotiations with the suspect continued for some time.
Map of the crime scene area:
"The whole QT was surrounded by police, and they were talking on their intercom thing, talking to the person inside," said witness Tony Ritchie.
"The barricade process sometimes can last a long time. We're not trying to force confrontations with an individual by himself and armed. There's no reason. We have time on our hands, and time-wise, this was a pretty lengthy barricade, but not abnormal in any way," said Sgt. Scherer.
About three hours later, a SWAT entered the storage room and began delivering first aid to the suspect. The suspect, identified as 37-year-old Daniel Parra, was declared dead at the scene.
Police say a medical examiner will determine the cause and manner of Parra's death.
QuikTrip released the following statement to FOX 10:
"Earlier this morning, an individual barricaded themselves in one of our Phoenix stores on the I-17 Corridor. We appreciate the Phoenix Police Department’s quick response in ensuring that all of our employees and customers were quickly and safely evacuated from the store. We are working with law enforcement to support their investigation into this incident. As always, the safety of QuikTrip’s employees and customers is our top priority," said, Aisha Jefferson-Smith, QuikTrip’s Corporate Communications Manager."