All is calm after man threatens to blow up home

Neighbors strolling through Westlyn Drive on Wednesday would never be able to tell that one day earlier, the street and surrounding areas were consumed with chaos and panic. The uproar started Tuesday

News 12 Staff

Jul 2, 2008, 11:12 PM

Updated 5,868 days ago

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Neighbors strolling through Westlyn Drive on Wednesday would never be able to tell that one day earlier, the street and surrounding areas were consumed with chaos and panic.
The uproar started Tuesday afternoon when 54-year-old Alan Reiff?s wife and son walked into the Clarkstown police station and told officers that Reiff was threatening to blow himself up inside his home.
Police discovered that Reiff had barricaded himself inside his house. As negotiations for his surrender were taking place over the phone, Reiff called the News 12 newsroom on his cell phone.
Assignment Editor Alex Diaz answered and listened for more than two hours as Reiff proceeded to make a rather unique request - Reiff wanted a news crew on the scene to film his arrest.
Streets were barricaded, and neighbors had to simply wait the situation out. Matthew Waters wasn?t allowed past the barricades. ?I?m pretty nervous right now,? he said Tuesday night. Waters had a wife and newborn child at home and wanted to check on them to make sure they were alright.
In the end, Reiff came out of the house shouting. Police had to use a Taser gun to subdue him.
According to investigators, Reiff has a history of emotional disturbances and may have been off his medication when the incident occurred. No weapons or explosives were found inside the house.
Reiff is currently undergoing psychological evaluation. No one was hurt in the incident, and police said they don?t plan on filing any charges against Reiff. They say they just want Reiff to get help and make sure it doesn?t happen again.


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