The Aberdeen Police Department assisted personnel from the Washington Department of Corrections and the Grays Harbor County Drug Task Force in serving a warrant on Wednesday.

Anthony David Jenkins, 51, of Aberdeen, was arrested Wednesday afternoon and taken into DOC custody after barricading himself inside a residence, according to an Aberdeen police news release.

Personnel from DOC and the drug task force had a felony warrant to arrest Jenkins, a registered sex offender, for being out of compliance, according to the news release.

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Negotiations between Jenkins and law enforcement personnel had broken down and Jenkins barricaded himself inside a room, said Lt. Andy Snodgrass of APD, and Aberdeen officers moved to provide assistance to the DOC and drug task force personnel.

“Negotiations were ongoing before we got there,” Snodgrass said. “We didn’t take over but we provided assistance.”

The incident’s location in Aberdeen and the proximity to Miller Junior High School all factored in the department’s response, Snodgrass said. Police were in contact with school officials about the situation, Snodgrass said.

“We responded because there’s a situation in the city of Aberdeen next to a school,” Snodgrass said. “There was never any danger to the school. We had the situation contained to the residence we were in.”

When further negotiations to coax Jenkins out of the barricaded room proved unsuccessful, Snodgrass said, police used OC spray, a chemical agent used as a non-lethal deterrent, into the room via an extendable wand.

“We introduced OC spray into the room he was barricaded,” Snodgrass said. “Usually that’s pretty effective. He refused to come out even after it was introduced.”

With Jenkins still refusing to exit, Snodgrass said officers breached through the door, and took Jenkins into custody. Jenkins was taken into Department of Corrections custody and is currently being held at the Hoquiam city jail. In addition to the felony warrant for noncompliance as a sex offender, Jenkins was cited for obstructing a law enforcement officer, the news release said.

Such incidents are infrequent but not unusual, Snodgrass said.

“Officers from the Cosmopolis Police Department, Hoquiam Police Department and the DEA also arrived to assist,” the news release read. “This is yet another great example of local law enforcement working together to help keep the public safe.”

Contact reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757-621-1197 or mlockett@thedailyworld.com.