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30+ hour barricade on Richmond Highway comes to an end

"The woman was safely taken into custody. Richmond Highway will be opened soon," police said early Thursday. "Thank you for your patience."

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Richmond Highway has reopened after a 30+ hour standoff with an armed woman ended early Thursday. 

The standoff with the barricaded woman began Tuesday morning around 11 a.m. when officers with the Fairfax County Police Department were called by another agency to the 7200 block of Fordson Road in Alexandria to check the area for a critical missing person. 

Once at the scene, officers were approached by a woman who claimed to have been abducted. She told police the person who took her had just fled.

While talking with the woman, officers noticed the abduction suspect leave the area in a 2014 black Jeep Cherokee. Police have also identified her as a critical missing person. 

After a short pursuit, officers watched the Jeep come to a stop in the 7400 block of Richmond Highway. 

That is where the woman remained barricaded inside her car with a gun for over 30 hours.

Members of the police department's Special Operations Division and Crisis Negotiation Team were brought in to de-escalate the situation.

During negotiations, they used a robot to get closer to the woman to get a better look at what was going on and to communicate safely.

The robot also delivered cigarettes to the suspect during the incident.

The Fairfax County Police Department stated on their Twitter page, just after 12 a.m. on Thursday, that: "The woman was safely taken into custody. Richmond Highway will be opened soon. Thank you for your patience."

Stay with WUSA9 as we follow this incident and provide the latest updates as they come into our newsroom. 

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