JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A wanted Jacksonville man died Tuesday afternoon after Polk County police say a SWAT standoff lasted for "more than four-and-a-half hours," according to a news release from the Polk County Sheriff's Office.
Marquis Lynn Baker, 45, had a warrant out for his arrest after he failed to appear in court for facing 11 counts of child sexual abuse charges.
According to the release, Baker was listed as a missing person based on statements he made to his defense attorney.
The release states that PCSO deputies were aware that Baker was in Bartow, Florida at around 10:27 a.m. on Tuesday, when they located his vehicle.
Police say after locating Baker's vehicle, deputies followed him for about five minutes until he turned off at a veterinarian's office and stopped his car. The release indicates that PCSO Crisis Negotiators tried to convince Baker to peacefully surrender while he sat in his gray 2012 Chevrolet Impala parked in a wooded area near Christina Animal Hospital, located at 6800 Church Ave. North near Mulberry, Florida.
The release further states that deputies continually communicated with Baker during the standoff to try and get him to surrender and even provided him with a cellphone to make it easier to "keep the dialogue going."
At about 3:20 p.m., Baker put a .40 caliber handgun to his head and fired a single bullet into the left side of his head. SWAT medics immediately began performing life-saving measures on Baker as he was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead at 3:50 p.m.
The news release states that no deputies discharged their firearms during the standoff.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd issued the statement below following the standoff:
“Our SWAT members and Crisis Negotiators have responded to armed barricaded subjects on two consecutive days. While the goal is to end these kinds of calls peacefully, the most important thing is that no deputies or innocent bystanders have been injured in either of these events—and for that, I am extremely grateful.”
