Long Beach SWAT Storms Atlantic Avenue House, Suspect Who Vowed to Shoot Cops Is Gone

A man accused of assaulting a woman during a domestic violence incident in Long Beach vanished before SWAT officers could find him, even after he threatened to shoot police if they showed up. Officers converged on a building in the 2400 block of Atlantic Avenue around 8 p.m. Thursday, closed off the street, and eventually breached the location with flash bang devices, only to discover the suspect was not inside.

According to MyNewsLA.com, police initially responded to reports of a domestic violence incident between a man and a woman. During the encounter, the suspect reportedly said he would shoot officers if they arrived at the scene, a threat that pushed a routine domestic call into full tactical response. The Long Beach Police Department deployed its SWAT team, which sent multiple vehicles to the building and worked to secure a perimeter before making entry.

Officers used flash bang explosive devices at the scene as part of the entry, and police obtained a search warrant before going into the residence, according to the same account. After searching the building, police determined the suspect was not there. The Long Beach Police Department reported that the man could not be located inside, and the investigation remains ongoing.

Why a Domestic Call Became a SWAT Standoff

Threatening to shoot officers responding to a call is not a minor add-on to a domestic violence investigation — it can trigger its own separate felony exposure. Under California Penal Code Section 69, using threats or violence to deter an executive officer from performing their duties is a wobbler offense punishable by up to three years in prison, while Penal Code Section 422 covers criminal threats that create reasonable, sustained fear, according to the Shouse Law Group. That combination of an underlying domestic violence allegation and an explicit threat against arriving officers is what typically escalates a standard patrol response into a high-risk SWAT operation.

The underlying domestic violence allegation itself carries serious weight under state law. California Penal Code Section 273.5 makes willfully inflicting corporal injury resulting in a traumatic condition on an intimate partner or cohabitant a felony, punishable by up to four years in state prison and fines as high as $6,000, per the Kraut Law Group. Separately, Penal Code Section 13701 requires law enforcement agencies to maintain written policies encouraging arrests during domestic violence calls when probable cause exists, and directs officers to evaluate threats to identify the primary or “dominant aggressor” in a dispute.

Flash Bangs and a Warrant Before Entry

The explosive noise heard by neighborhood witnesses came from LBPD's SWAT equipment. Under the City of Long Beach's AB 481 Military Equipment Use Policy, adopted in November 2024, the SWAT team maintains 12-gram low-roll distraction devices designed to emit bright flashes and loud noise to temporarily disorient dangerous suspects during high-risk entries. LBPD's SWAT team operates within the Patrol Bureau's Field Support Division, combining tactical operators, crisis negotiators, canine handlers, and tactical medics for situations that exceed normal patrol capabilities, according to the City of Long Beach.

Even with a suspect believed armed and dangerous, officers paused to secure judicial authorization before going inside. Under California Penal Code Section 1524, law enforcement must establish probable cause before a judge to obtain a search warrant when entering a private residence during a barricade scenario in non-exigent circumstances, ensuring any evidence gathered remains admissible in court.

A Corridor With a History of Violence

The 2400 block of Atlantic Avenue sits in central Long Beach near the Signal Hill border, part of a heavily traveled commercial and residential corridor that links neighborhoods to hospital facilities and northern commercial districts, according to LBReport.com. The stretch has seen repeated violence this year, including an April daylight shooting near Poly in the 1900 block and an August stabbing in the 6000 block.

Citywide, Long Beach police recorded 162 aggravated assaults in early 2025, even as city leadership pointed to a 19% reduction in violent crime over a 20-year span in announcements made late last year, per the City of Long Beach. Domestic violence calls remain among the most common and volatile calls patrol officers face statewide — data from the California Department of Justice, cited by Kidsdata.org, shows California agencies field more than 160,000 domestic violence-related calls annually, averaging roughly 6.1 calls per 1,000 adults.

How the suspect slipped away before SWAT completed its perimeter and entry remains unclear, and it is not the first time this year that a suspect has vanished before Long Beach officers could secure a scene. The department's investigation into his whereabouts, and into the domestic violence allegation itself, continues.