MERIDIAN -- Meridian Police say they now have a suspect in custody after a six and a half hour standoff Friday afternoon.
Police say the 25-year-old Raymon Alberts came to the front door after they gassed the basement of the home.
Meridian Police believe they have solved at least five recent robberies and burglaries in the Treasure Valley as the standoff took place at a Meridian home. Police also believe they can link the suspect to several other crimes in the Treasure Valley.
The house on Idaho Avenue was surrounded by officers and a SWAT Team. Police tried to contact Alberts inside by megaphone, but there was no response. Alberts was seen moving around inside.
Dozens of officers surrounded the home on Idaho Avenue near Meridian Road. Several rounds of pepper spray were fired into the house around 4 p.m.
A bomb robot circled the home looking inside windows and broke them. It has a camera mounted on it that allows police to see inside the home. The police chief say furniture was moved to act as a barricade.
The robot never saw the suspect on the main floor, but the home has an attic and a basement. Using that information and the information from the suspect already in custody, police determined he was hiding out in the basement.
Police say they got two citizen tips about two men who are believed to have been involved in recent robberies at local Subway restaurants. Police then staked out the house Friday morning, watching for unusual activity.
The other man believed to be involved in the robberies, 21-year-old Tim Polston left the home around 1 p.m. Police stopped his pickup at Pine Avenue and Meridian Road, and took him into custody for questioning.
Alberts and Polston, are suspects in two armed robberies at Subway restaurants in Meridian, a robbery at a Jacksons store in Nampa, and two attempted burglaries at Subways in Boise.
We are also told Alberts had a felony warrant out for his arrest for failing to appear in court.
Police took extra precautions to keep the public safe, because Polston told officers there are several high-powered rifles and handguns in the home. Several nearby homes had been evacuated.
The Boys and Girls Club, which is nearby, was put on lockdown. All doors were locked.
Also, Meridian Elementary School went on what school district officials called a "soft" lockdown. That means their front doors were locked and they kept students in the building. The students were released on schedule at 3:45 p.m. School buses ran on schedule. Children that normally walk home from school had to be picked up by a parent.
Both men face several felony charges.
