Neighborhood goes into lockdown after man shoots officer, barricades himself inside a home

COLUMBIA, SC – Lexington County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a domestic violence situation on September 5^th. 

During the investigation, a deputy was shot which lead to the husband barricading himself inside of his home for several hours.  The man eventually surrendered to police.

#BREAKING: Large first responder presence in and near Manchester Park subdivision after one deputy was shot. Neighbors should stay inside as we work to make contact and negotiate with a barricaded man. pic.twitter.com/lmi8l4HrM4

— Lexington Sheriff (@LCSD_News) September 5, 2020

There has not been much information released surrounding the incident other than police responded to the home regarding some type of domestic dispute between the suspect, Mark Louis Cote, who is 70-years old and his wife.  

Three deputies responded to the call and one of them was shot during the investigation.  At least one deputy returned fired, but it does not appear that Cote was struck.

The deputy was transported to a local hospital where he was given medical treatment for a gunshot wound to the upper body.  Thankfully, the injury did not appear to be life-threatening and the deputy has already been released from medical care.

Cote retreated into a home and stayed there for several hours as police tried to convince him to exit the residence.  Lexington County Sheriff’s Office released a press statement on Twitter, saying:

“Large first responder presence in and near Manchester Park subdivision after one deputy was shot.  Neighbors should stay inside as we work to make contact and negotiate with a barricaded man.”

At 7:36pm, police advised on Twitter that they had established an ability to communicate with Cote.  They said:

“A line of communication has been established with the man barricaded in his home.  SLED agents are negotiating with him.  Based on information available to us at the scene, he is the only one inside the house.”

#UPDATE: A line of communication has been established with the man barricaded in his home.

SLED agents are negotiating with him.

Based on information available to us at the scene, he is the only one inside the house. #LESM #LCSDnews

— Lexington Sheriff (@LCSD_News) September 5, 2020

Approximately two hours later, the Sheriff’s Office called for nearby residents to evacuate as they worked to convince the man to peacefully surrender. 

They said:

Negotiations continue on the scene with the man who’s barricaded himself into his house.  Neighbors near the home have been relocated for safety reasons.”

Sometime in the early morning hours of the 6^th, Cote did surrender himself to the police.  The Sheriff’s Office released a tweet confirming the arrest of the man on September 6^th at 3:29AM. 

Police advised that Cote was transported to a local hospital for medical clearance but say that he was not injured during his encounter with the police.  Cote’s wife appears to be safe as it is reported that she had retreated to a neighbor’s residence, possibly before deputies encountered her husband.

Police could have transported Cote to a local hospital for medical clearance because of his age or other medical conditions.  This is not abnormal and does not imply in any way that he was injured during the standoff.

Instances like this go to prove that once again there is no such thing as routine when it comes to being a law enforcement officer.  Responding deputies must not have to been to overly concerned for their safety when responding as it was a domestic involving an elderly couple.  Unless of course they were given specific information that Cote was armed and/or hostile prior to the incident.

Situations like these are what some police warn of when people talk of replacing police officers with unarmed trained mental health professionals to handle these types of calls.  There is no way to properly determine if any call would be safe enough for an unarmed mental health professional to respond without the police. 

In this situation, if mental health professionals had responded, they would have had minimal means, if any, in which to protect themselves.  And for those of you that believe their response as opposed to an officers would make a difference, do not kid yourselves. 

Although we do not yet know why Cote decided to open fire on deputies, what we do know from common sense is that the domestic situation was enough to push Cote into irrational thinking.  With that mindset, it would be logical to think he would take out his frustrations on anyone who was coming to deal with it, not just police. 

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Another officer was recently shot in Nebraska. Here’s that story again.

 LINCOLN, NE – Officers from Lincoln Police Department went to the area of 33^rd Street near Vine to locate and apprehend 17-year-old Felipe Vazquez who had an active warrant for aggravated assault stemming from a homicide which occurred in March. 

Police are not releasing much information at this time other than to confirm a police officer was shot in the abdomen during the arrest attempt on the 26^th. 

It was reported that two subjects fled from the scene after the shooting and were later apprehended.  The officer is reported to be in good condition in the hospital and there are no reports of anyone else being injured.

Our thoughts and prayers go out for the Lincoln Police Officer shot today while serving a search warrant. We ask that you also keep the officer in your thoughts. @Lincoln_Police pic.twitter.com/cjk4GX1lA1

— Columbus NE Police (@Columbus_NE_PD) August 26, 2020

Lincoln Police were seeking Vazquez for an open arrest warrant which stemmed from the March 2020 homicide of 36-year-old Edward Varejcka. 

As officers attempted to take Vazquez into custody, someone fired several rounds, striking a Lincoln Police Officer. 

It has not been released yet who is alleged to have been the shooter.  The report of an officer down was heard on the police radio just before noon.

Neighbors reported seeing what was described as a van pull up in front of the residence with police approaching the house before the shooting. 

Shortly afterward, they heard multiple gunshots, some apparently from inside the residence, followed by two people who ran “out of the house,” running east down Vine Street.

Lincoln police officer shot serving warrant, suspects in custody https://t.co/zCaB51xCs6 via @foxnews

— Chris 🇺🇸 (@Chris_1791) August 26, 2020

The officer who was shot was taken to the Bryan West Campus.  As is customary, there was a significant law enforcement presence there as members will be there showing support.  Initial reports are that the officer is expected to survive. 

Police began to actively look for the two people that had fled the scene and had a perimeter in the area of 33^rd and 35^th Streets to Vine and O Streets.  Police utilized canines in the search. 

An area resident, Nancy Brt, told the Journal Star that she was going to leave her residence after 12:30pm when she was told by officers to stay inside her residence.  She said:

“I opened my garage door to go to work.  An officer stepped into the garage door with his gun drawn and asked, ‘Will you please go back into your house?’”

Area schools were locked down as a result of the shooters fleeing into the residential neighborhood.  The request forced all of the students in the classroom to stay away from the windows, doors locked, and lights off.

Shortly after 1:30pm, Lincoln Police reported that both subjects who had fled the scene had been taken into custody.  There have been no official updates that have been released at this time advising of the circumstances of the arrest.

The homicide in which Vazquez is alleged to have been involved in occurred on March 8^th of this year. 

Officers stated that three people had gone inside an apartment where Varejcka was at and a fight broke out.  During the physical fight, one of the three people stabbed Varejcka multiple times in his torso.  Varejcka died from his injuries.

Police allege that Krysean Reynolds and Makayla Fell were involved in the stabbing and were both arrested for being an accessory.  A third, Victor Melendez, III, was arrested on March 22^nd for aiding and abetting in the homicide. 

Through the investigation, police allege that Marsalis Phillips, 15-years old, was there during the homicide.  They believe that Phillips was the one who actually stabbed Varejcka multiple times causing his death. 

Phillips was arrested and charged with second-degree murder and use of a deadly weapon during the commission of a felony.  There has been no report as to how Vazquez was involved in this incident or how his arrest warrant is connected.  

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