Tampa man arrested after standoff

TAMPA -- Police have arrested a 25-year-old Tampa man after he barricaded himself inside a home in Sulphur Springs for nearly two hours today.

Police say the situation began with a traffic stop. Officers patrolling the neighborhood saw a purple Pontiac whose driver they recognized from a previous call, a home invasion. They believed he had a warrant for his arrest. They called an officer in a marked police car who pulled over Ilyas Ali Jafar.

At first, police spokeswoman Andrea Davis said, all seemed calm. Then Jafar took off running, and darted into a home at 8515 Brooks St. He refused police demands to come out of the house. Hostage negotiators, the SWAT team and patrol officers arrived about 10:45 a.m. Jafar barricaded himself inside the home, and police were concerned there might be someone else inside, they said.

Police contacted Jafar's mother and relatives who arrived to help, Davis said. He still refused to leave the house, so officers went inside to find him hiding behind a washer and dryer. He was unarmed.

The homeowner was not home at the time. Her two dogs inside the house were uninjured.

Jafar was take to the Hillsborough County jail.

Jafar's sister, Nijimah Salaam, 38, was at the scene and said her brother is a good person and the father of two girls, 3 months and 7 years old. She said she was surprised at how many police were called to the scene.

"They came out here with a battering ram that looks like it ought to be in Iraq," she said.

Police cars, SUVs and a tank-like vehicle responded. Authorities said a full tactical response was justified because they didn't know if people were in danger inside the house.

-- Abbie Van Sickle, Times staff writer

Comments

[al]

Everyday these people are in the news. So sad. Better build more jails.

[Concerned Person]

just like a cop. Take A Tank to a bb gun fight. Hand a Person a gun and a badge Power Trip.

[rowdy]

Dear concerned person. Are the cops supposed to know that this guy isn't armed and dangerous. You would probably gripe if the guy killed the dogs. Get a life.