Man arrested after hours-long standoff in Irvine

An hours-long standoff ended early Sunday when Irvine officers, with the help of a police dog, arrested a man suspected of threatening to kill his neighbor, authorities said.

Officers responded around 2 a.m. to a call about a man causing a disturbance at an apartment complex in the 500 block of Veneto, Irvine police spokeswoman Farrah Emami said in an email. He was identified as Nathaniel Estes, 35, Emami said.

A confrontation began when a neighbor walked up to Estes’ second-story apartment intending to talk to him about yelling coming from inside, police said. When Estes opened his door, police said, he pointed a gun at the neighbor and threatened to kill him.

The neighbor called police, but when officers arrived, Estes would not leave his apartment, Emami said.

A SWAT team responded, and police negotiators spoke with Estes for hours, according to authorities.

“At one point, Estes armed himself with a firearm and appeared to be pointing it out the window toward the SWAT officers, who were observing the location from inside a SWAT rescue vehicle,” Emami said.

Police said Estes emerged at about 5:20 a.m. and walked downstairs but refused to cooperate. When he tried to go back upstairs, police shot him with large-caliber, less-lethal rounds, but that didn’t stop him, Emami said.

A K9 from the Newport Beach Police Department was released, and officers were then able to arrest Estes, according to authorities.

Estes was taken to a hospital for treatment of a bite on an arm.

He posted bond after being booked into Orange County Jail on Monday, according to Sheriff’s Department records.