A Bellevue man was arrested yesterday following a tense standoff that lasted several hours and involved a SWAT team. The arrest occurred two days after the same man, Kristopher Connelly, 23, had escaped from the hospital where he was being treated for injuries sustained during a previous run-in with police. According to WPXI, the police were initially called to the scene for a domestic incident on Wednesday.
During the incident on Wednesday, Connelly was seen breaking things inside the house and had threatened to shoot officers, prompting his arrest. After trying to flee via a rear staircase, Connelly, who had large cuts on his right hand, was then taken into custody and transported to a local hospital for treatment, only to escape from his hospital room before the Friday standoff. TribLIVE reported that the North Hills Special Response Team was called in due to the threats Connelly had previously made.
Upon responding to the initial call on Laurel Avenue and South Bryant Avenue, officers found Connelly hiding in an attic crawl space after receiving information that he had returned to the house. WPXI witnessed a person being taken out of the house in police custody, who was later identified as Connelly.
Confirming the details of the incident, Bellevue Police said that on the day of the original incident, a woman outside the house warned officers that Connelly was armed. He had threatened to shoot the officers and resisted arrest. "Medical treatment was immediately provided," including the application of a tourniquet, according to TribLIVE, before his eventual flight from hospital care. Following the arrest on Friday, Connelly was taken to Allegheny County Jail, facing multiple charges including aggravated assault and terroristic threats.
