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Hotel standoff in Brunswick ends with arrest of man from Washington state

Police responded to the Best Western on Gurnet Road in Brunswick where the suspect was allegedly threatening staff with a knife.

BRUNSWICK, Maine — A man from Tacoma, Washington, was arrested Wednesday night in Brunswick after allegedly threatening staff at the hotel where he was staying. 

In a news release, Brunswick Police Chief Scott Stewart said Richard M. Simpson, 38, of Tacoma, Washington, threatened to stab hotel staff with a large knife he was carrying. When police arrived at the Best Western on Gurnet Road, Simpson refused to open the door to his room and also threatened to stab officers, according to the release.

Scott said the Brunswick Special Response Team broke into the room and arrested Simpson after a brief struggle. Other residents of the hotel were evacuated and nobody was injured during the incident, according to Scott.

Simpson was charged with terrorizing, criminal threatening, refusing to submit to arrest, creating a police standoff, and criminal mischief. He is scheduled to appear in Cumberland County Superior Court on May 17. 

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