Armed man tries to breach Cincinnati FBI office, causing standoff

— COMING UP. THIS IS WLWT NEWS 5, LEADING THE WAY WITH BREAKING NEWS. A WILD CHASE AND SHOOTOUT, THAT STARTED WITH A MAN TRYING TO GET INTO THE LOCAL FBI OFFICE WITH A GUN. GOOD EVENING. I’M ASHLEY KIRKLEN. SHEREE: AND I’M SHEREE PAOLELLO. IT BEGAN WITH THE GUY FIRING A NAIL GUN AT LAW ENFORCEMENT. INSIDE THE FACILITY WHERE THE VISITORS COME IN. WE HAVE LIVE TEAM COVERAGE AS SEVERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES, FROM THE FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL LEVELS ARE INVOLVED. IT ALL STARTED AT THE FBI OFFICE IN SYCAMORE TOWNSHIP. OFFICIALS SAY THE SUSPECT TRIED TO GET IN WITH A GUN. THAT STARTED A CHASE ON 71, THROUGH WARREN COUNTY AND ENDING IN CLINTON. ASHLEY: WE BEGIN WITH WLWT NEWS 5’S KARIN JOHNSON AT THE MEDIA STAGING AREA. WITH THE LATEST ON THE INVESTIGATION. >> I’M AT THE STAGING AREA. I’M ON THE OTHER OF I-71 FROM WHERE THE SCENE IS UNFOLDING. I EXPECT AN UPDATE FROM EITHER THE CLINTON COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY OR THE OHIO STATE HIGHWAY PATROL. IN THE LAST HOUR OR SO, THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF ACTIVITY, WHICH I’M NOT GOING TO REPORT UNTIL WE HAVE SOME KIND OF CONFIRMATION. THE BOMB SQUAD ARRIVED ON SCENE ABOUT TWO HOURS AGO. THIS DID START DOWN IN CINCINNATI AT THE FBI FIELD OFFICE AROUND 9:15. BRIAN HAMRICK WILL HAVE MORE DETAILS ON THOSE SPECIFIC DETAILS. THERE WAS A MAN WHO TRIED TO BREAK INTO THE FIELD OFFICE. THAT GUY TOOK OFF, UP 71 AND INTO WARREN COUNTY. ONCE HE WAS IN WARREN COUNTY, A REST STOP AREA. THAT IS WHEN THE OHIO STATE HIGHWAY PATROL SAYS THEY SPOTTED THE CAR, FOLLOWED THE VEHICLE. THE SUSPECT THEN TURNED AROUND, FIRED AT TROOPERS WHO WERE FOLLOWING HIM, LEAD THEM INTO CLINTON COUNTY. THERE WAS A PURSUIT. EVENTUALLY AT THE INTERSECTION OF STATE ROUTE 73, 308, IS WHEN THE SUSPECT GOT OUT OF THE VEHICLE. THERE IS A CORNFIELD, THE AREA WENT ON LOCKDOWN. ALL DAY, THERE HAS BEEN AN ACTIVE STANDOFF. THE LAST UPDATE WE GOT WAS ABOUT AN HOUR AGO SAYING THERE WAS AN ACTIVE STANDOFF. PEOPLE IN THE AREA TOLD TO BE VIGILANT. THEY HAD EYES ON THE SUSPECT. HE WAS ARMED. IN THE LAST HOUR, WE HEARD ACTIVITY ON THE SCANNERS. WE ARE EXPECTING AN UPDATE SHORTLY. AS SOON AS WE GET AN UPDATE, WE WILL MAKE SURE TO PASS IT ALONG. IN CLINTON COUNTY, KARIN JOHNSON. SHEREE: ALL OF THIS INFORMATION STILL COMING IN. YOU MENTIONED AT THE BEGINNING YOU ARE EXPECTING SOME SORT OF UPDATE. I’M SURE PEOPLE IN THE AREA WANT TO GET INTO THEIR HOMES, BUSINESSES, OR LEAVE THEIR BUSINESSES. ARE YOU GETTING WORD THEY HAVE HIM IN CUSTODY OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT? >> WHAT WE ARE HEARING IS THEY WERE CLOSING IN ON THE SUSPECT, BUT AT THIS POINT, WE DON’T KNOW IF HE’S IN CUSTODY, IF MORE SHOTS WERE FIRED. THERE WAS GUNFIRE EXCHANGED WHEN HE FIRST GOT OUT OF HIS VEHICLE. THE LAST UPDATE I HEARD, THEY WERE CLOSING IN ON HIM. WE HOPE TO GET MORE INFORMATION BECAUSE THERE WAS A LOCKDOWN, THERE STILL IS A LOCKDOWN WITHIN A MILE RADIUS OF WHERE IT IS UNFOLDING. WE CAN ONLY IMAGINE THE BUSINESSES, PEOPLE TOLD TO STAY INSIDE AND LOCK THEIR DOORS, THEY HAVE TO BE TERRIFIED. I KNOW AUTHORITIES HAVE BEEN ON IT, IN TERMS OF UPDATING THE PUBLIC. AS SOON AS THE THREAT IS OVER, I’M SURE THEY WILL INFORM US SO WE CAN INFORM THE PUBLIC. SHEREE: KARIN JOHNSON. WE WILL CHECK BACK IN. THE ONLY GOOD NEWS DOESN’T LOOK LIKE ANY AGENTS OR POLICE OFFICERS WERE HURT IN THE EXCHANGE OF THE GUNFIRE. ASHLEY: CONTINUING OUR TEAM COVERAGE OFF OF SMITH ROAD. SHEREE: THAT IS WHERE WE FIND COURTIS FULLER. HE’S WHERE THE SUSPECT EVENTUALLY WAS SURROUNDED. COURTIS: HE SURE WAS. I JUST TALKED TO THE OWNER OF THE FARM THIS GUY IS AT. HE SAID THERE ARE LITERALLY HUNDREDS OF ARMED OFFICERS LINING THE ROAD LEADING UP TO HIS FARM. THIS GUY WILL NOT GET OUT OF THERE UNLESS HE GIVES HIMSELF UP. OBVIOUSLY, IF HE SHOOTS TOWARD POLICE AND OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT, THAT COULD TRIGGER NOT A HAPPY ENDING. I WILL TELL YOU THIS, THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF ACTIVITY. YOU HEARD HER REFERENCE THIS. ABOUT 45 MINUTES AGO, WE SAW A CARE FLIGHT HELICOPTER LAND. THE OWNER OF THE PROPERTY TOLD ME THE CARE FLIGHT LANDED RIGHT IN HIS FRONT YARD. HE DID TELL ME THE SUSPECT IS, AT THAT TIME, INJURED. THAT IS WHAT HE WAS BEING TOLD. HE HAS FAMILY MEMBERS ON THE FARM. THEY ARE NOT IN ANY DANGER. HE BELIEVES IT IS ABOUT A 300 TO 400 ACRE LAND. WE WILL HEAR DIRECTLY FROM HIM IN THEIR NEXT HALF-HOUR. HE WAS ABLE TO GIVE AN INTERESTING PERSPECTIVE, EVEN SHOWING A PHOTO OF THE VEHICLES, THE LAW ENFORCEMENT LINED UP. IT IS A SIGHT YOU RARELY SEE. HE SAID SWAT IS ON THE GROUND. YOU HEARD KARIN TALK ABOUT THE DAYTON BOMB CREW ON THE GROUND. I TALKED TO ONE OFFICER A LITTLE WHILE AGO, HE SAID WHAT THEY ARE DOING IS TRYING TO WAIT THIS GUY OUT. THEY WANT TO FIND OUT WHAT HE WAS THINKING ABOUT AS WE WERE BEING TOLD EARLIER TODAY. THEY ARE TRYING TO WAIT HIM OUT AS LONG AS THEY CAN. THIS IS GOING TO BE UP TO HIM. WE ARE HEARING SOME THINGS ON THE GROUND THAT THEY DON’T WANT TO REPORT UNTIL THERE IS FULL CONFIRMATION. I EXPECT THAT WITHIN THIS NEWSCAST, SIT TIGHT AND WE WILL GIVE YOU MORE INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT IS HAPPENING. REPORTING LIVE, COURTIS FULLER. ASHLEY: WE CERTAINLY WILL BE STANDING BY FOR ANY UPDATES OR DEVELOPMENTS. I SEE THEM PASSING YOU. ARE THE ROADS OPEN? WHAT SHOULD PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT DRIVING IN THAT AREA? COURTIS: GOOD QUESTION. NOT OPEN, JUST DETOURED. THIS IS 73 AND ROUTE 3 80. WHAT THIS BASICALLY DOES IS LOOP YOU AROUND. NORTH IS STILL A MESS. THEY HAVE BEEN DETOURING PEOPLE. THERE HAS BEEN A LITTLE CONSTRUCTION. THAT HAS CAUSED EVEN MORE TRAFFIC. FOR THE MOST PART, THIS AREA WE ARE SEEING WITH THE HIGHWAY PATROL STATION HAS BEEN BLOCKED OFF FOR HOURS. ASHLEY: THANKS SO MUCH. SHEREE: BACK TO WHERE THIS STARTED IN THE KENWOOD AREA AT THE FBI FACILITY WHERE THIS SUSPECT TRIED TO GET IN WITH WEAPONS. ASHLEY: BRIAN HAMRICK IS LIVE WHERE THIS DRAMA, BEGAN TO UNFOLD ABOUT 7 HOURS AGO, BRIAN — BRIAN, YOU HAVE BEEN THERE QUITE SOME TIME. >> THIS WAS A VERY STRANGE BEGINNING TO ALL OF THIS. SOURCES WITH NBC NEWS, THEIR SOURCES WITH THE FBI, THE MAN SHOWED UP. THIS IS A KENWOOD FACILITY. TECHNICALLY IT IS SYCAMORE TOWNSHIP. HE CAME INSIDE THIS VID IS HER — VISITOR SCREENING AREA. HE DISPLAYED A NAIL GUN, ONE THAT YOU WOULD PUT ON ROOFING SHINGLES WITH. FIRED AT SOME OF THE PERSONNEL AND PULLED OUT AN AR-15 STYLE WEAPON, WAVED IT AROUND. IT SET OFF ALARMS IN THE BUILDING. ARMED FBI AGENT’S CAME RUNNING. THE MAN TOOK OFF FROM THE BUILDING, UP 71, AND ENDED UP WHERE CURTIS AND KARIN ARE. THE FBI BROUGHT OUT THEIR EVIDENCE TEAM TO START COLLECTING WHAT THEY COULD FIND OUT HERE. THERE WAS A LOT OF INTEREST IN THE WINDOW OUTSIDE LEADING TO THE VISITOR SCREENING AREA. WE WERE ABLE TO TAKE A CLOSER LOOK. IT DOES LOOK LIKE THERE WERE SCRATCHES IN THE WINDOW. NO ONE SAID — THE FBI HAS NOT SAID WHETHER THE NAIL GUN WAS FIRED OFF ON THIS SIDE OF THE GLASS OR INSIDE. HOMELAND SECURITY ALSO BROUGHT UP SOME TEAMS. THEY HAVE BEEN HERE EVER SINCE. THEY BROUGHT A K-9. THE DOG AND HANDLER WALKED THE PERIMETER OF THE FENCING. THEY HAVE NOT SAID WHY THE DOG WAS BROUGHT IN, BUT IT WOULD NOT BE UNCOMMON FOR THEM TO SEARCH THE PERIMETER, POSSIBLY LOOKING FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF ANY EXPLOSIVES LEFT BEHIND. APPARENTLY ALL OF THIS HAPPENED IN A SHORT OF TIME. THERE IS A OFFICE BUILDING ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE FBI CENTER. IT HAS MASSIVE GLASS WINDOWS OVERLOOKING THE AREA. WE TALKED TO DOZENS WHO WORK IN THAT FACILITY. NO ONE SAW ANY OF THIS UNFOLD. NONE OF THE PEOPLE WE TALKED TO. THERE ARE SECURITY CAMERAS ALL OVER, INCLUDING A COUPLE ON THE FRONT OF THIS FACILITY. THOSE WOULD HAVE CAPTURED — WE TALKED TO A NUMBER OF BUSINESSES. THE FBI HAS BEEN COLLECTING SECURITY CAMERA VIDEO. THEY SHOULD HAVE A PRETTY GOOD PICTURE OF WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER ALL OF THIS. AND EVENTUALLY, THEY WILL WANT TO KNOW HOW IT ALL UNFOLDED. THEY ARE STILL PUTTING THIS TOGETHER, IT IS AN ACTIVE INVESTIGATION. REPORTING LIVE, BRIAN HAMRICK. SHEREE: I AM SURE THEY ARE LOOKING THROUGH THE VIDEO. WE KEEP SAYING HE CAME IN THROUGH THE SECURITY THROUGH THE VISITOR AREA. DOES THE VISITOR AREA DID LARRY — DIRECTLY CONNECT TO THE OFFICES? >> YEAH, I HAVE BEEN IN HERE BEFORE, THE WAY I REMEMBER IT, YOU HAVE THIS VISITOR CENTER, AND I THINK YOU HAVE TO WALK OUTSIDE AND INTO THE MAIN PART OF THIS. THERE’S A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT CHECKPOINTS COMING IN, GOING OUT OF THIS FACILITY, AND GOING BACK INTO THE MAIN PART OF THE FBI CENTER. THERE WILL BE A FEW CHECKPOINTS. IT IS A LITTLE UNCLEAR AS TO WHETHER OR NOT HE WAS OUTSIDE FIRING OFF THE NAIL GUN, OR IF HE GOT INSIDE SOMEHOW, SOME RUSE, MAYBE HE SAID HE HAD TO TALK TO AN AGENT OR SOMETHING. IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO KNOW HOW IT UNFOLDED. HE WAS CARRYING AN AR-15 STYLE WEAPON AND SOMEHOW GOT IN HERE. MAYBE HE WAS LOCKED ON THE OUTSIDE, PRESSED THE GUN ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE WINDOW. THEY NEVER SAID. BUT I’M CERTAIN THESE ARE AT LEAST BULLETPROOF WINDOWS. WOULD NOT HAVE GONE ANYWHERE THAT WAY. HE MAYBE THOUGHT HE COULD PUNCTURE THE WINDOW AND GET INSIDE. HE ENDED UP LEAVING WHEN ARMED FBI AGENT’S CAME OUT WHEN THE ALARM WAS SOUNDED. SHEREE: MUCH MORE AS SOON AS WE START TO GET NEW INFORMATION AS SOON AS THINGS WRAP UP IN CLINTON COUNTY AND HOPEFULLY THEY GET THE GUY IN CUSTODY. THEY WILL TELL US HOW IT UNFOLDED. IN THE MEANTIME, A VERY BUSY DAY FOR THOSE AGENTS AND LOCAL LAW

Armed suspect who tried to breach Cincinnati FBI building dead after standoff, police say

Updated: 6:27 PM EDT Aug 11, 2022

An armed suspect was shot and killed by law enforcement after an attempted breach of a Cincinnati FBI building led to a standoff in rural Clinton County, according to Ohio State Highway Patrol.According to Ohio State Highway Patrol, it started around 9 a.m. when an armed man attempted to breach FBI Cincinnati’s visitor screening facility. An alarm went off and FBI special agents responded when the man fired a nail gun at law enforcement personnel, sources tell NBC. The man then held up an AR-15-style rifle before fleeing in a vehicle north onto I-71 leading Ohio State Highway Patrol on a pursuit. Police said during the pursuit, the suspect fired shots from his vehicle before getting off the highway, stopping near Smith Road in Clinton County.That’s when police said the suspect and officers exchanged gunfire, leading to a standoff. Law enforcement officers attempted to negotiate with the suspect but were unsuccessful. That’s when officers attempted to move forward and take the suspect into custody but those efforts were also unsuccessful, OSP said.The suspect later raised a firearm toward law enforcement and shots were fired by officers on the scene. The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene, OSP said.The suspect has been identified as Ricky Walter Shiffer, according to NBC News. NBC News also confirmed Shiffer was at the Capitol on Jan. 6. Hamilton County Clerk of Courts Pavan Parikh shared the following statement on the attempted breach:“As many are aware, there was an incident this morning where an armed individual attempted to breach the Cincinnati branch of the FBI. This situation is still developing. I condemn violence in any form. It is important to support peaceful disagreement and for the public to go through proper channels to express that disagreement with government institutions. The Bailiff’s Division of the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts shares responsibility for courtroom security at the Hamilton County Courthouse. Along with our partners at the Hamilton County Sheriff’s office, our Criminal Bailiffs keep our judges, clerks, courtroom staff, and the public safe. For that reason, we take any incidence of violence or threats of violence directed against our justice system and the rule of law very seriously. We hold out hope for a peaceful resolution to this situation.”This is a breaking news story, WLWT is working to learn more and will continue to update with the latest information as it comes in.

An armed suspect was shot and killed by law enforcement after an attempted breach of a Cincinnati FBI building led to a standoff in rural Clinton County, according to Ohio State Highway Patrol.

According to Ohio State Highway Patrol, it started around 9 a.m. when an armed man attempted to breach FBI Cincinnati’s visitor screening facility.

An alarm went off and FBI special agents responded when the man fired a nail gun at law enforcement personnel, sources tell NBC. The man then held up an AR-15-style rifle before fleeing in a vehicle north onto I-71 leading Ohio State Highway Patrol on a pursuit.

Police said during the pursuit, the suspect fired shots from his vehicle before getting off the highway, stopping near Smith Road in Clinton County.

That’s when police said the suspect and officers exchanged gunfire, leading to a standoff.

Law enforcement officers attempted to negotiate with the suspect but were unsuccessful.

That’s when officers attempted to move forward and take the suspect into custody but those efforts were also unsuccessful, OSP said.

The suspect later raised a firearm toward law enforcement and shots were fired by officers on the scene. The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene, OSP said.

The suspect has been identified as Ricky Walter Shiffer, according to NBC News. NBC News also confirmed Shiffer was at the Capitol on Jan. 6.

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At approximately 9 AM this morning an armed subject attempted to breach the Visitor Screening Facility at #FBI Cincinnati. After an alarm and a response by FBI special agents, the subject fled north onto Interstate 71. pic.twitter.com/vFZHnpbM9L

— FBI Cincinnati (@FBICincinnati) August 11, 2022

Hamilton County Clerk of Courts Pavan Parikh shared the following statement on the attempted breach:

“As many are aware, there was an incident this morning where an armed individual attempted to breach the Cincinnati branch of the FBI. This situation is still developing. I condemn violence in any form. It is important to support peaceful disagreement and for the public to go through proper channels to express that disagreement with government institutions. The Bailiff’s Division of the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts shares responsibility for courtroom security at the Hamilton County Courthouse. Along with our partners at the Hamilton County Sheriff’s office, our Criminal Bailiffs keep our judges, clerks, courtroom staff, and the public safe. For that reason, we take any incidence of violence or threats of violence directed against our justice system and the rule of law very seriously. We hold out hope for a peaceful resolution to this situation.”

This is a breaking news story, WLWT is working to learn more and will continue to update with the latest information as it comes in.