Bellevue chess game turns into police standoff

BELLEVUE — What began as a chess game with a neighbor turned into an eight-hour standoff with police who made a few moves with flash-bang grenades and tear gas before an armed man surrendered Thursday at a Bellevue apartment building.

Police say the man threatened his chess opponent with a gun about 2 a.m. Thursday. The neighbor ran out and called police.

The armed man remained inside, ignoring calls from a SWAT team to surrender, snubbing a visit from a robot with a camera and resisting officers lobbing flash bangs and tear gas canisters.

The man finally surrendered after 10 a.m., waving a white flag out his window. He was arrested for investigation of assault.

Some other residents in the building were evacuated and nearby streets were blocked during the standoff.

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