Suspected shooter in police custody

LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - Police said shots were fired Thursday morning in Lafayette. They now have the suspected shooter, 50-year-old Ronald J. Lampitok, in custody.

Police said the incident began when Lampitok, who was riding a moped, fired two shots at a man near the intersections of 16th Street and Perdue and 16th and Larue Street.

Police said the both men fled the scene.

Police said witnesses helped them locate the alleged shooter at a residence at 1511 Grove Street, where he is living with his daughter.

Police surrounded the house with weapons drawn and cordoned off the area.  Some residents were evacuated from their homes.

Harold Miller said he was just sitting at home watching The Price is Right when police knocked on his door.

"They just knocked on the door and said 'Would you please leave for a little while?' because they have a situation going on next door and they didn't want anybody to get hurt," said Miller.

A police negotiator was brought to the scene shortly before noon, and after approximately 20 minutes of negotiation through a window of the house Lampitok surrendered to police.

Lampitok has been booked into the Tippecanoe County jail on preliminary charges of possession of a firearm, criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, and attempted voluntary manslaughter.

No one was injured, and with the arrest, and Lafayette Police Lieutenant Jim Taul said everyone is now safe.

"The neighborhood is safe. I want to make sure everyone knows that. They are free to walk up and down the sidewalk, it is a safe neighborhood," said Taul.

Even so, some neighbors are concerned by the knowledge that something like this could happen so close to home.

"It's a little scary knowing that that could happen pretty close to home and I'm kind of concerned with it being only 3 houses down from me," said neighbor Ken Monroe.

Donna Adams of Oxford was in the area checking on her 95 year old mother in law when she drove up and saw police cars everywhere.

"I was coming to visit her, actually I was panicking. She's 95 , she's by herself and she's not been in very good health and I didn't really know what was going on," said Adams.

Neighbor Loretta Warren said she is concerned for her daughter and grandchildren, who live nearby.

Warren said she believes the shooting may have been retaliation for an incident on Sunday, when she said 3 men fired shots at the house at 1511 Grove Street.