A man was arrested after being found in the wall of a plasma center in Fresno at Grifols Biomat USA Plasma Center on Blackstone and Dakota Avenues.
The Fresno Police Department says officers first got a call around 7 a.m. for reports of a possible person in the attic of the business, and officers searched but did not find anything.
Later, around 9 a.m., officers were called back to the same location after a patient in the plasma center heard noises coming from within the wall and somehow saw eyes peering out at them.
Discovery took a turn when the patient made their startling observation.
Police said a patient was donating plasma when the man suddenly broke through the ceiling, and officers attempted to negotiate with the man to come out, but he refused and continued moving through the ceiling and walls.
KMPH reported that the man was naked during the incident.
The standoff escalated quickly as officers encountered dangerous resistance.
During the incident, an officer looked through an opening to determine the man’s location when the suspect threw an object, possibly a pipe, that nearly struck the officer in the head.
The suspect caused additional damage beyond his violent behavior.
The man threw an object at a police officer and flooded the building, according to Fresno police.
Law enforcement escalated their tactics to end the ordeal.
Police said the man eventually exited the ceiling but refused officers’ commands, prompting officers to deploy pepper balls before taking him into custody.
The pepper deployment forced an immediate emergency evacuation nearby.
The pepper spray, caused by the pepper ball, spread through the multi-tenant commercial building, leading to the evacuation of 41 people from Grifols Plasma Center, Joyride Insurance Company, Leslie’s Pool Supplies, Planet Fitness, and a nearby hair salon.
Fresno Fire’s Hazardous Materials Response Team and Mobile Ventilation Unit ventilated the affected businesses and monitored air quality before allowing most occupants to return, and no injuries were reported.
In the viral moment that unfolded Wednesday morning in Fresno, a plasma donation center turned into a chaotic crime scene.
A man in his 30s broke through the ceiling when a patient was donating plasma, and officers attempted to negotiate with the man, but he refused to come down and continued moving through the ceiling and walls.
Investigators said the man threw an object, possibly a pipe, at an officer, nearly striking the officer in the head, and broke a pipe that flooded the building.
The suspect was arrested on suspicion of felony vandalism, assault with a deadly weapon, resisting arrest and trespassing.
Grifols Plasma Center remained closed Wednesday while additional cleanup was completed.