A nine-hour standoff in downtown Geneseo ended after gunman Gerald J. Edwards, 36, surrendered.
At 4:40 a.m. on Dec. 11, Geneseo police received a call that Edwards, who was armed, had broken into a former girlfriend’s downtown apartment.
Two children in the apartment were allowed to leave, said Geneseo police chief Tom Piotrowski, but Edwards held Julie Stradt in the apartment.
When police responded, Edwards fired shots at the officers. Throughout the day, Edwards fired at police on “more than 15 occasions” said Piotrowski.
To the police chief’s knowledge, only one shot was fired by the officers at Edwards. “They showed very good restraint,” Piotrowski said.
In the afternoon, Edwards released Stradt, and, following that, police fired pepper spray into the apartment.
“He came out and surrendered shortly after that,” said Piotrowski. “It came to a successful resolution.”
Edwards is being held on a $2 million bond at the Henry County Jail. Piotrowski said the six tentative charges against Edwards include: home invasion, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated unlawful restraint, aggravated discharge of a firearm, possession of a firearm without a FOID card and possession of firearm ammunition without a FOID card.
Piotrowski said the police have had previous dealings with Edwards, which were domestic related.
The chief called the standoff “a horrific incident” that had a “happy, peaceful resolution.”
“Every Henry County agency responded, as did the Illinois State Police,” he said.
Police were in contact with Edwards via telephone throughout the day, and several different negotiators were called to the scene.
“It was a very long day,” said Piotrowski, adding Edwards surrendered at 1:26 p.m.
Geneseo school officials and downtown business owners were notified by police in the morning. “I can’t thank the business community enough,” said Piotrowski. “We very much appreciate their assistance.”
He added the Geneseo Telephone Co. office served as a telephone headquarters for police throughout the day.
Because of the scope of the situation, Piotrowski said the Illinois State Police will be investigating.
“We wanted to bring in an outside agency to make sure everything is done properly. Plus, they have the manpower for this.
“The investigation is going to take some time because of the number of agencies involved,” he added. “We have nine hours of radio traffic to go through.”
Geneseo, Ill. —
