N.L. standoff suspect slipped away from home

An investigation is being launched after a man who had barricaded himself inside a home in a community south of St. John's for eight days was able to slip away without police knowing.

Leo Crockwell, 55, was arrested on Saturday on Petty Harbour Road on the outskirts of St. John's, about 20 kilometres northeast of the site of the standoff in Bay Bulls.

"We will review the circumstances surrounding him fleeing the home and evading perimeter security," the RCMP said in a statement.

It is unclear how Crockwell was able to leave the home that had been under tight scrutiny by a heavy police presence.

The RCMP blamed his ability to leave undetected on the distracting noise made by a hose pumping water into the house.

"The noise created by the introduction of the water affected our ability to use audio and video assets which had been engaged to monitor Crockwell's movements in the home," the RCMP said. "As a result he managed to leave the home by a yet unknown exit."

Officers had been trying to make life as uncomfortable as they could for Crockwell. Temperatures were bitterly cold Friday night when they used long hoses to pour water through the broken windows of the home.

They also continuously fired off loud noisemakers, all in an effort to force Crockwell to come out. Earlier in the day, electricity to the house was cut.

Police said Crockwell has a history of mental health issues and was wanted on criminal charges, including assault with a weapon and uttering threats.

The standoff began last Saturday morning after a domestic dispute at his mother's two-storey house. Crockwell's mother and sister-in-law left the home while he remained inside, RCMP said.

On two separate nights earlier in the week, shots were fired at an RCMP robot sent to the residence to try to establish communications with the barricaded man.

After the standoff ended, police said the use of "strategic, non-aggressive means," plus information supplied by the community, led to a safe arrest without incident around noon NT.