An Akron man led police on a chase throughout the city followed by a four-hour standoff after he threatened to harm himself and another man Tuesday morning.
Around 2:30 a.m., Akron police attempted to stop a driver who was driving with a suspended license.
The driver, Steven Weddle, 27, of Akron refused to stop, leading police on a chase through the north and east sides of Akron.
During the chase, which reached speeds up to 80 mph on the highway, the Weddle contacted dispatch saying he had a gun and was going to kill himself and his passenger.
Weddle crashed his car into a chain-link fence before running through backyards.
Officers recovered a black and silver BB gun in the vehicle.
Police deployed a K-9, which Weddle assaulted, enabling him to get away. He ran through the back of a house on the 200 block of Dennison Avenue where he barricaded himself inside an abandoned house.
SWAT arrived on scene and attempted to communicate with Weddle. After failing to reach him, the SWAT team deployed chemical munitions into the house.
After a four-hour standoff, Weddle still resisted the request to surrender peacefully, according to police.
He was hit with a non-lethal round and taken into custody where he was booked into the Summit County Jail.
A 37-year-old man from Cleveland was detained but later released.
Weddle is charged with willful fleeing, obstructing official business, resisting arrest, assaulting a police animal and facsimile firearm.
Officers also found Weddle had warrants for two counts of escape, felonious assault and assault.
