Police Standoff: Two Taken From Billerica Home After Party, Gunfire

BILLERICA (CBS) - Two men were taken into custody outside a home in Billerica following an hours-long standoff that brought police and SWAT teams to the Harvard Road neighborhood.

It started as a 9-1-1 call about gunshots being fired behind a home. Police immediately surrounded the area and tried to reach out to two men in their 20s inside.

Kevin Almeida's wife heard words exchanged before the shot. "She heard a couple of guys out back towards the woods saying, 'Are you going to fire it?' 'Are you going to fire it?' - something along those lines, couple of swears ... and then she heard a gunshot go off," said Almeida.

Police say they used a bullhorn, drone technology and phone calls to try to reach the men inside without success. Neighbors heard the commands.

"To open a window, to turn on a front light, to come to the front door, all things to let them know they were okay inside the house," said neighbor Susan Santoro.

Police said it started as a party last night, with neighbors claiming it was organized by the son of the homeowners who were away on vacation. Around midnight, there was also a serious accident, as one of the party-goers apparently sped away and struck a tree in the neighborhood, seriously injuring the driver and passenger.

"Screaming down the street, hit the tree across the street, spun out and they were in my front yard," said Dennis Kelley.

Police also had other safety concerns. "We were working on the assumption there were multiple weapons in the facility. That the people know we want to speak with them and they will not do that," said Billerica Deputy Police Chief Roy Frost.

Neighbors say when SWAT teams moved closer to the home more than four hours into the standoff, the two men came out with their hands raised and were placed inside cruisers.

Neighbors were relieved it was finally over. "We had no idea there were firearms in the house or anything like that, so very nerve-wracking," said Santoro.

Police say patience paid off and call it a textbook ending with no injuries. It's not yet clear if charges will be filed.