BELLEVUE, Ohio — A Bellevue man is behind bars after a nearly six-hour standoff with sheriff's deputies Saturday night.
According to the Seneca County Sheriff's Office, it started as a family dispute at a farm house in the 3000 block of North County Road 27. Officers said 36-year-old Ray Freeze III got into shoving match with his father. The fight escalated, leading the other five members of the house, including two small children, to escape to the barn and call 911.
Deputies said when they arrived on scene, they were greeted with hostility.
"The one deputy saw him raise an AR-15 style weapon and start to shoot at them. They both dove for cover," Seneca County Sheriff Frederick Stevens said.
Stevens said Freeze continued shooting at the pinned-down deputies as Tiffin police arrived for back-up. A perimeter was established and an armored vehicle was brought in to get the family and the deputies inside out safe.
Once everyone was removed from the home, smoke bombs were thrown in to draw Freeze out.
"He did come out. His hands were in the air, but then he came right at the officers, and was yelling and screaming at the officers, and for the officers safety they did tase the subject," Tiffin Police Chief David Pauly said.
Freeze was charged with attempted murder, and Stevens said more charges are likely to follow.
As for Freeze's family, the sheriff said they weren't physically hurt, but broken glass and bullet holes now litter the home, rendering it unlivable.
"Obviously, it was a very emotional night for everyone, and they had other family members come and they're staying with those family members," Stevens said.