Police arrest barricaded man at Fort Collins mobile home park

Fort Collins police arrested a man Wednesday afternoon following a more than two-hour standoff that kept residents from their homes near a northwest Fort Collins mobile home park.

According to police, suspect Joseph Norrie, 44, barricaded himself inside his mobile home at Skyline Trailer Park, 2211 W. Mulberry St., shortly after 2 p.m.

Police evacuated residents from the area and blocked off Taft Hill Road to Ponderosa Drive and closed Briarwood Road, said Kate Kimble, spokeswoman for Fort Collins Police Services.

According to a press release, Norrie had threatened to harm himself with a knife and ignite a gas line in the house. Xcel Energy and Poudre Fire Authority assisted police, shutting off the gas line and keeping bystanders away from the area.

Police announced that Norrie was arrested at 4:52 p.m. After exiting the house, acting "uncooperative" toward officers and being taken into custody, officers used a "less-lethal device" to bring him into compliance.

When officers cleared the home, they found that Norrie had lit a fire inside, which was quickly extinguished, according to the press release. There was no one else inside the home, according to police.

Norrie was arrested on suspicion of reckless endangerment and refusal to leave premise upon request of a police officer, both Class 3 misdemeanors.

Police said the investigation is ongoing and additional charges may be filed by the Larimer County District Attorney's Office.

Police diverted school traffic in the area, according to Danielle Clark, spokeswoman for Poudre School District.

Kevin McNeece, a resident at the mobile park, had to pick his grandson up at Poudre High School, rather than the nearby bus stop. The school had information readily available so it wasn’t an issue, McNeece said.

McNeece said he rarely sees police in the park.

“Police came and told us to leave because there was a gas leak,” McNeece said. “We guessed it was more than a gas leak because of all the gear they were wearing.”

McNeece and his grandson went to get sodas while they waited to get back into their home.

Beverly Noyes and her adult daughter Linda Brock were leaving their home in Skyline to go to the store when they saw three police officers walking through the neighborhood. When they returned from the store, they weren’t allowed back into the neighborhood. They waited on Ponderosa for with other neighbors before Norrie was arrested.

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Anthony Brost lives nearby the unit the police were responding to Wednesday. Brost has lived there for about four years with his mother.

Brost said he hasn’t seen police in the neighborhood during his four years living there. “It’s a little unsettling," he said. "Look at all these police cars.”

The neighborhood is usually nice, he said. “It’s a real quiet community, never any problems. People are friendly.”

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