NOTE: Fortuna Police Chief Casey day tells the Outpost that the events in described below began at about 11:30 p.m. and wrapped up at about 1 in the morning. Also he said that the lacerations to the suspect’s face evident in the photo below happened after he left the custody of Fortuna police; Day said that the suspect engaged in “assaultive behavior” while being booked into jail.

We’ve reached out to Sheriff’s Office PIO Samatha Karges and will update when we hear back.

UPDATE, 12:27 p.m.: Chief Day calls back — actually, he says, the booking photo in question was from a previous incident.

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From the Fortuna Police Department:

On Thursday April 28th, Fortuna Police Officers responded to the Riverwalk Drive Shell Station for a report of an employee that was being threatened and chased out of the store by a man armed with a knife.

Once officers arrived on scene, they determined that 22-year-old Zackarias Rowe had brandished the knife at the employee and attempted to gain access behind the counter in an apparent attempted robbery or attempt to engage the employee in some sort of violent altercation. The employee fled from the store and flagged down a passing motorist to call police. Rowe exited the business with stolen property and vandalized the employee’s vehicle before fleeing.

Officers were able to locate Rowe in a nearby cabin in the 2100 block of Riverwalk Drive in Fortuna, California. Rowe was barricaded in a small cabin and negotiations were started in an attempt to get him to safely and voluntarily surrender. After ongoing attempts to gain voluntary compliance failed, an arrest warrant was obtained for the cabin and for the arrest of Rowe. Rowe broke out the windows inside the cabin and made multiple threats to kill officers if entry was made and despite repeated attempts to de-escalate the situation, Rowe remained hostile toward police.

Using non-lethal force options, officers were able to deploy PepperBall projectiles into the cabin. This option resulted in the immediate surrender of Rowe, and he was taken into custody safely and without injury or further incident.

Zackarias Rowe was transported and booked into the Humboldt County Jail for suspected violations of sections: 211 PC- Robbery, 417(a)(1) PC- Brandishing a deadly weapon, 594(B)(1) PC- Felony Vandalism, 594(A)(1) PC- Misdemeanor Vandalism, and 148(a)1 PC- Resisting, Obstructing, or Delaying a Peace Officer.

The Fortuna Police Department remains committed to public safety and transparency. Any questions regarding this incident can be directed to the Patrol Commander, Lieutenant Matthew Eberhardt at (707)-725-7550.