A 49-year-old man suspected of threatening gardeners next door with a gun Saturday surrendered to sheriff's deputies about 5 1/2 hours after holing himself up inside a home in Compton, authorities said.
The man walked outside his residence with a rifle or shotgun and threatened gardeners who were using a leaf blower next door, Deputy Joana Warren of the Sheriff's Information Bureau told City News Service.
"He had issues with the blower," Warren said. He confronted the gardeners claiming "they were blowing trash into his house," she said.
When the suspect went back into the house the gardeners called 911 and deputies were dispatched at 9:52 a.m. to the 600 block of North Kalsman Avenue, Warren said.
A boy was inside the home when deputies arrived but he left the house when his mother got there, she said.
A SWAT team was called to the scene and crisis negotiators worked to make contact with the man, who surrendered about 3:30 p.m. and was detained at the Compton Sheriff's Station pending a search of his home and further investigation, Warren said.
SWAT deputies were awaiting a warrant to search the house for the weapon, she said.
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Earlier reports indicated the suspect put a gun to someone's head but Warren could not confirm that.
