On Tuesday, 9/27/16, just before 8:30AM, Clovis Police received a 911 call regarding a welfare check of a female at an apartment near Jefferson Ave./Music Ave. The caller stated that a male had a gun, and had stabbed his girlfriend before holding her against her will overnight. Officers arrived on scene within two minutes and established a perimeter around the apartment complex.   After more than an hour of Officers trying to make contact with the occupants of the apartment, a female was able to run out to Officers.  It was discovered that she had a knife wound to her arm, and she was immediately transported to the hospital.   A male subject inside, who was identified as 33 year-old Evan Wooten, refused to come out and ignored commands by our Officers and Crisis Negotiations Team so our SWAT team was called in. The apartment complex, which consisted of 4 apartments, was evacuated because of information that he could be armed and hiding in an attic.

After several hours of searching with the assistance of a robot, and Fresno Police and Fresno Sheriff’s Department K9’s, Wooten was located hiding in the attic of his apartment. Even after being located by the K9, Wooten still refused commands by Officers to come out, so the K9 was applied. Wooten was taken into custody without further incident and was immediately treated by EMS who was on scene.

After being treated at the hospital, 33 year-old Evan Wooten was booked into Fresno County Jail for several felonies, including kidnapping, false imprisonment, assault with a deadly weapon, terrorist threats, battery to a cohabitant, and a parole violation. The victim in this case was treated at the hospital for her injuries and released.

During a search warrant after Wooten’s arrest, Detectives located a black pellet gun and a knife.

We would like to thank both the Fresno Police Department and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office for their assistance.