Man Barricaded In Apartment For 8 Hours Surrenders To Concord Police

CONCORD, NH — An eight-hour standoff with a criminal threat suspect on Monday on Pleasant Street ended after Concord police and its regional SWAT team took the barricaded suspect into custody.

Hank Ussery, 66, of Concord, was arrested on reckless conduct, felon in possession of a dangerous weapon, three criminal threatening counts, and two criminal restraint counts.

Police closed off parts of Liberty and Pleasant streets for about eight hours after receiving a report of a knife threat incident at one of the city’s homeless coalition’s apartment buildings. Around 9:15 a.m., a Riverbend mental health services employee told police the incident occurred at the apartments at 120-122 Pleasant St., owned by the Concord Coalition to End Homelessness, for a report of a man with a knife threatening two women who were social workers. Several officers headed to the area while the department called for a “signal 1,000,” requesting radio silence. Dispatch confirmed the name of the tenant who was the suspect and warned officers he may have a collection of knives inside his unit.

Police attempted to reach the suspect, later identified as Ussery, via a cell phone with a Massachusetts area code. One officer in the field stated they had made visual contact with the suspect from a window.

“He is swearing at us through the window,” one officer stated.

The suspect was described as a man in his mid-60s, bald, about 5 feet, 5 inches tall, and weighing around 150 pounds. Dispatch said police had limited interactions with the suspect. The only known incident was an unwanted guest call in July at Nonna’s Place on Pleasant Street, they said. Dispatch accused Ussery of throwing items and threatening staff members.

Officers discussed the building’s layout, including how all of the units were separated, while attempting to evacuate residents from the building and shutting down streets around the home.

Around 10 a.m., officers reported contacting Ussery. A woman, one officer said, was with him.

Concord police posted a note on X-Twitter around 10:45 a.m. requesting residents and commuters stay out of the area.

The mobile crisis unit was requested around 11:30 a.m., and police said more officers and mental health employees would be coming to the building. Clinicians were expected to be at the building around 12:45 p.m.

SAU 8 School Superintendent Kathleen Murphy notified Concord High School parents of the police action.

Just before noon, a watch commander announced police were filing an arrest warrant and a search warrant against Ussery. The watch commander also stated it appeared the suspect was involved in a previous stabbing incident, according to scanner chatter. Patch learned later Ussery was previously incarcerated on manslaughter and first-degree assault charges in Oklahoma.

The Central New Hampshire Special Operations Unit was activated and eventually entered the building.

Ussery was taken into custody on several charges just before 5 p.m. He refused bail and will be arraigned in Concord District Court on Tuesday. Ussery was taken to Concord Hospital, where he received treatment for a facial injury and alcohol consumption, according to scanner chatter.