Suspect taken into custody following standoff in Clearwater after woman reported killed

CLEARWATER — A man is reported to be in custody tonight following a standoff with police that began after a woman was believed killed in her home in south Clearwater.

The woman’s identity has not been released. A six-year-old girl and a four-year-old boy were removed safely from the home this morning, according to media reports. A two-year-old boy was removed about 6 p.m.

The Clearwater Times reported late this evening that RCMP Sgt. Kevin Podbisky has confirmed the three children are unharmed.

CFJC’s Raffelina Sirianni reported shortly after 7 p.m. that RCMP said a suspect had been taken into custody.

“Essentially what we know is there was an altercation at this home, a woman was killed, three children were taken hostage,”  Sirianni reported from the scene earlier in the day.

“The man believed to be the suspect is believed to be the common-law husband of this woman.”

RCMP surrounded the home and brought in Emergency Response Team members and a police helicopter.

Resident Daryl Huff told CBC News police taped off two residences — a house in south Clearwater and a house in a wooded area north of Clearwater where the man had apparently holed up.

“I saw lots of RCMP, tactical units, a helicopter also landed and was up and down flying in the area,” Huff told CBC News.

Huff also tweeted that businesses in the vicinity of the house in which the suspect was barricaded were closed.

The Vancouver Province reported tonight that the woman’s Facebook page indicated she was a licensed practical nurse at Dr. Helmken Memorial Hospital, but a hospital spokeswoman declined comment.

The dead woman was in her 20s, while her estranged husband is in his 40s.