LEXINGTON, Ky. (FOX 56) — A portion of I-75 in Lexington has reopened after being closed for about five hours while police negotiated with an armed man.
Traffic was backed up for miles in both directions on I-75 around 10 a.m. Monday.
FOX 56 arrived on scene to find traffic stops, speeding and a heavy police presence.
The Lexington Police Department (LPD) said officers were dispatched to the Bryan Station Road overpass on Interstate 75 at approximately 9:42 a.m. where police said an “armed and suicidal individual” was at the scene.
FOX 56 spoke with a business owner on Bryan Station Road who said this is the first time something like this has happened near his business and while sales have dropped, he’s hopeful it will come out safe.
“It has affected us in the mornings as we have a lot of regular customers who use this road to commute to work. We don’t see many customers who are usually here by this time,” said Prasanna Acharya, an employee at High Acres Liquor Store. “This is more than just a business, business is continuing here but we were worried about the person.”
Members of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Crisis Negotiation Unit tried to calm the suspect, who authorities say fired a gun and eventually took his own life.
The man then shot himself and was taken to a local hospital in fatal condition, according to the Los Angeles Police Department, but officers did not return fire.
