By JINJOO LEE
Updated Saturday evening with information about Williams’ charges
A 33-year-old man was arrested after he threatened officers with a butcher knife and barricaded his apartment on the 100 block of East State Street to resist arrest, Ithaca Police say.
When police officers arrived at the apartment at approximately 4:36 a.m. Saturday to respond to a reported domestic incident, they heard Ricardo Williams, 33, yelling from behind the closed door that he would stab anyone who entered the apartment, according to a press release from the Ithaca Police Department.
Officers say they heard Williams throwing around items around the apartment while making the threats. Williams then opened the door and was observed holding a large butcher-style knife over his head and making stabbing motions toward officers.
Williams retreated after one of the officers deployed a Taser, according to the IPD. He then barricaded the apartment door and refused to communicate further with the officers, according to the IPD.
The Ithaca SWAT Team and Critical Incident Negotiation team joined the officers and attempted to negotiate with Williams for several hours.
When Williams still did not respond, a robot camera was used to plan a successful entry into the apartment, according to the IPD.
After the SWAT team entered the apartment, Williams was found with a large knife still in his possession.
He was taken into custody and charged with menacing a police officer, criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree and criminal mischief in the fourth degree, according to the IPD.
Williams was transported to a local hospital for a mental health evaluation. He was remanded to the Tompkins County Jail on $2,500 cash bail, according to the IPD.