Man threatens officer with shovel, arrested in Hanford, police say
HANFORD, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – A man has been arrested after allegedly threatening an officer with a shovel near a McDonalds in Hanford on Thursday morning, the Hanford Police Department said.
Officers say on Thursday at 7:21 a.m. they were dispatched to the McDonald’s located at 335 West Lacey Boulevard in Hanford for a suspicious man. The man was observed by witnesses carrying a shovel in the drive-thru and striking a customer’s vehicle.
Police say one officer contacted a man matching the description of the suspect a block away from the restaurant. The man was identified as 32-year-old Joshua Erkelens. While contacting Erkelens to investigate the possible vandalism, Erkelens armed himself with a shovel.
Investigators say Erkelens began to show erratic behavior, raised the shovel above his head, and walked toward the officer. The officer maintained distance and ordered Erkelens to drop the shovel.
Erkelens, according to detectives, began to walk away from the officer but was still armed with the shovel and threatened to kill him. He ignored all commands from the officer. The officer kept his distance while ordering the man to drop the shovel.
Police say Erkelens stopped, turned towards the officer, raised the shovel over his head a second time, and started yelling obscenities.
Investigators say the man started walking again and entered the parking lot of the Armtrak station. Additional officers arrived on the scene. Due to Erkelens’ erratic behavior and being armed with a shovel, less-than-lethal bean bag rounds were deployed striking Erkelens.
The bean bag rounds had a limited effect on Erkelens. Police say a taser was then deployed. Erkelens was taken to the ground and continued to resist officers, but he was eventually handcuffed.
According to the Hanford Police Department, Erkelens was medically cleared on scene by paramedics and booked into the Kings County Jail on suspicion of exhibiting a deadly weapon towards an officer.
