Attempted murder suspect arrested after Pasco standoff

NEW PORT RICHEY (FOX 13) - An intense stand-off scene played out at the Rodeway Inn in New Port Richey Tuesday.

Cornered in one of the rooms was 39-year-old Michael Putnam. Deputies say he’d been on the run for attempted murder after he allegedly shot a woman in Hudson last week. Deputies waited outside with guns drawn.

“When somebody tells us they're not coming out, they're going to shoot it out with law enforcement, they're going to die first, that is a serious situation,” said Captain Michael Jenkins with the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office.

Putman was believed to be armed with a sawed off shotgun. Officials shut down parts of US 19 and all the guests at the Rodeway Inn motel were evacuated while deputies negotiated with Putnam. The stand-off would last several tense hours.  

“He wanted to talk to his family, at one time. At another time, he was sobbing on the phone, another time he said 'bring it,'” said the captain. 

The sheriff's office says it was last Tuesday when Putnam got into a fight with a woman and ended up shooting her in the arm.  She was able to escape and Putnam fled. Deputies issued an alert to be on the lookout for Putnam, and tracked him down to the Rodeway Inn Tuesday morning.

Deputies said Putman has connections to the Aryan Brotherhood, a white supremacist group.

“An individual who has those ties and who's threatening law enforcement … creates a dangerous situation,” said Capt. Jenkins.

The stale-mate would finally come to an end once the tear gas came out and deputies made entry into the suspect's room just before 2 p.m. They took the shirtless suspect into custody.