By Jim McKinnon
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
PITTSBURGH, Pa. — A Southside man who was believed to have been holed up in a building on Carson Street, eluded police, possibly by hopping across the rooftops.
Carson Street, between 10th and 13th streets had been closed to traffic from about 5:15 to 8:45 a.m. because the suspect, Duane Gongaware, a convicted felon, has a history of violence against police, and he was believed to be armed with a pistol.
Police were flagged down by Mr. Gongaware’s girlfriend, whose name was not released. The woman said she and her boyfriend had been drinking until the early morning hours until they got involved in a dispute.
At 5:10 a.m. the woman hailed a passing patrol car to report the incident, and she advised officers that Mr. Gongaware, 35, was armed.
Police, including SWAT units, surrounded the building and tried to coax the suspect out of a third-floor apartment above the City Books store at 1111 East Carson Street.
Eventually, members of the tactical unit who had been positioned on the roof of a building across the street, fired several tear gas cannisters through the windows of the apartment.
The woman had advised police that a pistol could be found in a kitchen drawer. However, the weapon was not found when officers forced their way into the apartment to search for the suspect and the gun.
About three hours into the standoff, as a state police helicopter was called in to observe the rooftops, the woman told police that Mr. Gongaware had a practice of climbing to the roof and hopping from building to building, said police Cmdr. RaShall Brackney.
With that information, the building search was called off and Carson Street was opened to traffic.
Cmdr. Brackney described Mr. Gongaware as a known felon who, when confronted by police, has a record of aggravated assault, drug violations.
Anyone with information about Mr. Gongaware’s whereabouts is asked to call 911 to report it. Police caution that the suspect is dangerous and he still might be armed.
Copyright 2008 The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette