WASHINGTON β It was a tense afternoon along H Street in Northwest D.C., as police tried to get a man to come down off of a rooftop. Police say that man is 36-year-old Ricardo Encarnacion.
According to the Metropolitan Police Department, Encarnacion was being arrested shortly before 3:15 p.m. for possession of an open container of alcohol. At some point, the man reportedly got away from an officer. Despite being handcuffed, investigators say the man stole a police mountain bike and rode off.
Police say he then made his way up to the rooftop of a building along H Street, near the corner of 6th Street in Northwest.
For about an hour, police tried to get him to come down. At points, he could be seen kicking things on the roof, and even throwing bricks down to the street below. All the while, he was still in handcuffs.
A DC Police Crisis Intervention officer was called to the scene and the incident, police say was resolved a short time later.
Encarnacion has since been taken into custody and is charged with assault on a police officer, fleeing, resisting arrest and possession of an open container of alcohol.
"I just was having egg rolls in a restaurant," said Janet Jennings, who is from Chicago. She's in D.C. for a wedding and went out to lunch with some family.
"It was my brother's fault. He wanted eggrolls. You thought you'd get eggrolls in Chinatown. Well, we went in there because one guy said go to Wok n Roll. So went in and started eating and that's when my husband and my brother go, there's police out there, they're putting on gloves. 'Oh my God they're putting up tape'. So, of course, I had to go look. I was like 'Oh My God they're blocking off the street'," said Jennings.
She told WUSA9 that she and the other customers inside the restaurant watched as more and more police officers arrived at the scene.
"He was on a building next to us up on the roof and you could see his legs dangling and he was throwing bricks," she explained.
She said police had the area taped off, and no one was allowed out of the building.
"No one was allowed out of the building everything was shut down," she explained.
She told WUSA9 that she and the other customers were relieved when they saw him being safely taken into custody but was not expecting the afternoon to unfold the way it did.
"I'm here for my nephew's wedding and I'm thinking boy I've got a better story than you," said Jennings.
Do you have a news tip on this story or any other story? We want to hear from you. Tell us about it by emailing newstips@wusa9.com.
MORE WAYS TO GET WUSA9
DOWNLOAD THE WUSA9 APP
Apple App Store: WUSA9 News on Apple
Google Play Store: WUSA9 News on Android
HOW TO ADD THE FREE WUSA9+ APP TO YOUR STREAMING DEVICE
ROKU: add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching for WUSA9.
For both Apple TV and Fire TV, search for "WUSA9" to find the free app to add to your account. Another option for Fire TV is to have the app delivered directly to your Fire TV through Amazon.
SIGN UP TO RECEIVE WUSA9 NEWSLETTER
Subscribe to our daily WUSA9 Newsletter for top stories from WUSA9 curated daily just for you. Get content and information right now for canβt-miss stories, Commanders content, weather, and more delivered right to your inbox.