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Philomath man arrested after early morning standoff

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Philomath police arrested a man early Monday after a hostage standoff following an attempted burglary and non-injury officer shooting that began just before 1 a.m. and ended almost four hours later.

An officer responded at 12:53 a.m. to a call about a burglary in progress at 245 S. 15th St. in Philomath. At the scene, William Scott Martin, 49, of Philomath, was armed with a handgun and trying to force his 51-year-old ex-girlfriend into a pickup behind the residence.

When police arrived, Martin was distracted, providing an opportunity for the female victim to run. The Philomath police officer fired at least one round, missing the suspect who then ran back into the house and took the first victim's 74-year-old mother hostage.

Officers from Philomath Police Department, Benton County Sheriff's Office, and Corvallis Police De-partment were dispatched to the scene, as well as members of the Linn County Sheriff's Office SWAT team and hostage negotiation team.

Following approximately two hours of negotiations, Martin surrendered without further incident and was taken into custody.

Martin is being held in the Benton County Jail on kidnapping, burglary, manacing and disobeying a no-contact order.

Philomath Police Chief Ken Elwer requested that Oregon State Police detectives investigate the incident. State Police are withholding the names of the Philomath officer as well as the victims during the investiga-tion, which is expected to last about a week.

The officer involved has been a member of the Philomath Police Department for two and a half years and is on administrative leave during the investigation.

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