At approximately 7:00 PM, Idaho Falls Police responded to an incident near West Sunnyside Road and Rollandet Street. 

By 9:30 PM, the suspect was successfully apprehended and police there is no threat to the public.

Initially, Idaho Falls Public Safety Dispatch took a report from a woman who wanted report a vandalism incident, alleging that someone had thrown something through the window of her home. Police responded to the 500 block of Sycamore Circle in the Carriagegate subdivision, which is South of Sunnyside Road near the intersection of Hickory Lane and Park-Taylor Road. A few minutes later, the woman called back and said the man displayed a gun.

Police attempted to call the male suspect several times by phone, but were unsuccessful in reaching him. Though police made verbal contact with the suspect, the man would not respond to commands to come out of the home peacefully. At one point, the man allegedly exited the home for a few moments waving a bat. Several police units, the IFPD SWAT team and a negotiator arrived to assist. Idaho State Police also helped secure the area and blocked entry to the subdivision as a safety precaution.

A Code Red alert was sent to homes in the subdivision as well as a Nextdoor alert to residents within a half-mile radius of the home. The alerts advised the public to stay inside and avoid the area. After approximately an hour and a half of attempts to get the man to come out of the home, police and the SWAT team surrounded the home to ensure the neighborhood residents' security. Police announced their entry and entered the home through the front door. An officer deployed one 40mm blunt impact projectile, which is considered to be safer and more effective than other kinds of less-lethal technology, such as rubber bullets.

34-year-old Michael G. Elder was successfully subdued by the impact of the projectile and was immediately taken into custody. Idaho Falls Emergency Medical Services checked the suspect and determined there were no life-threatening injuries from the impact of the projectile. Police transported Elder to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center for medical clearance before taking the man to the Bonneville County Jail on the charge of Aggravated Assault. No one else was inside the residence.

Police obtained a search warrant for the home. The search is expected to take some time to complete.
The investigation is ongoing.

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Idaho Falls Police Department Contact:
Holly Cook 
Public Information Officer
Office: (208) 612-8655
[email protected]

To make a report / give a tip, call dispatch: (208) 529-1200