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Dallas Police Headquarters: SWAT Team Searching DPD Parking Garage For ‘Threat’ [Breaking]

By Tara West
Published on: 12:29 PST, Jul 9, 2016

Dallas Police Headquarters is on lockdown after a man allegedly dressed in black was discovered inside of a locked police garage. The unknown man was reportedly asked what he was doing inside of the garage before fleeing into a nearby stairwell. Police are now searching for the unauthorized individual as SWAT team members have rushed the parking garage. The headquarters location was already on lockdown due to an early security threat that was taken “very seriously” in which an armed group from Houston claimed they were headed to Dallas to kill police officers.

https://www.facebook.com/wfaachannel8/videos/10153795159971545/

WFAA was streaming the SWAT team’s actions live to their Facebook account as it unfolded — the video can be watched above. The news station reports that the lockdown began after an anonymous threat was called into the Dallas Police Headquarters in which the officers were warned that a group of armed individuals from Houston were planning to attack the Dallas Police Department this evening.

Following the lockdown for the Houston threat, a possible immediate threat was identified as an officer says a man dressed in black was seen walking inside of a parking garage that was supposed to be secure. The man reportedly ran into a stairwell when he was confronted by a detective inside of the parking garage. Following the scare, SWAT teams were deployed to the area and the local news stations revealed that they were searching the area for the suspect.

Reporter Jason Whitely was live on the scene and says that WFAA is being informed by inside sources within the Dallas Police Department that the threats are being taken seriously and that many are fearful for their lives. Currently it is being reported that no shots have been fired inside of the building and that initial reports of possible gunfire proved unfounded. Instead, the Dallas Police Department says that the sound heard was a device used by the department to enter a locked fence.

However, police are continuing to patrol the area around the parking garage in a bid to find the suspect who has since gone missing. Sources noted that they believe the suspect may have found a way outside of the garage but that the SWAT team was preparing to “breach” a locked door or gate inside of the parking garage to fully clear the area.

Though the WFAA reporters continued to stream footage of the parking garage, they moved further back and informed the public that they would no longer be streaming “live” coverage but instead piecing together footage from earlier after the Dallas Police Department asked them to stop recording as it was putting police officers’ lives in danger. The department was concerned that the suspect or suspects could watch the footage and see the exact location of officers outside. Therefore, it appears that WFAA complied and footage was cut back to a further distance.

However, it seems that other news stations may have also been in the area as the Dallas PD began blasting the media on their Twitter account for false reporting and live streaming.

The police confirm that a search of the parking garage was complete and that no suspect was found in the building. However, they say a second search is being performed by K9 officers out of an abundance of caution.

[Image via Inquisitr]

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