Yorkeys in lockdown Police act quickly in standoff with armed man

YORKEYS Knob residents are reeling after police shut down entry points to the suburb on Saturday amid a standoff with a man armed with a crossbow and an imitation firearm.

The beach and roads into the quiet beachside village were blocked for several hours after officers arrived at a resi- dence in Varley St about 7pm.

Acting Senior Sergeant Steve Heemi led the operation to secure the area and remove an armed man who allegedly made threats against himself and members of his family.

“We’ve put a diversion in to keep the community safe,” Acting Snr Sgt Heemi said.

“Our staff moved forward, called him out, and he’s surrendered without further incident.

“He was taken to custody and a police protection notice has been completed, and mental health assistance conducted as well.”

Varley St resident Werner Schmidlin was in bed when an armed police officer knocked on his door, telling him officers needed to use his yard to access the property next door.

Mr Schmidlin said a new tenant had moved into a neighbour’s property just a few days earlier.

“Everything was blocked up all over Yorkeys Knob,” Mr Schmidlin said. “Police were roaming all over the place.

“When I saw the policeman in front of my screen door, my first thought was that somebody might have been wearing a police uniform and wanted to rob me.”

Another neighbour said he heard police telling the man to lie on his stomach while they handcuffed him.

A police spokesman said no charges had been laid.

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