A Saraland man was shot and killed Wednesday after a standoff with multiple law enforcement agencies that began when deputies attempted to serve him with warrants tied to an internet crimes against children investigation.
Juan Jose Puente Jr. died after firing on officers on two separate occasions during the encounter, according to Mobile County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Lori Myles. Officers returned fire after Puente shot at them, ending the standoff.
The incident began when investigators with the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office Internet Crimes Against Children unit attempted to serve warrants on Puente at his home on Ideal Avenue in Saraland. Deputies stopped Puente on Shelton Beach Road as he was leaving the residence, and he was tased after refusing to exit his vehicle when ordered to do so, according to the sheriff’s office.
Puente then fled the traffic stop in his vehicle. When a pit maneuver failed to disable the car, he returned to his home on Ideal Avenue and barricaded himself inside his vehicle within the garage, the sheriff’s office said.
From inside the garage, Puente opened fire on Mobile County Sheriff’s Office hostage negotiators, K9 units, personnel from the district attorney’s office and Saraland police officers who had assembled outside the home. Officers returned fire as negotiators spent roughly 30 minutes attempting, without success, to talk Puente into surrendering.
Puente continued firing at law enforcement during the standoff before he was fatally shot, according to the sheriff’s office.
The shooting is expected to undergo the standard review process for officer-involved shootings in Alabama, though the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office has not released additional details about which agency or agencies fired the shots that killed Puente. The investigation into the incident remains ongoing.