A portion of Pacific Coast Highway was closed for several hours in Malibu Wednesday morning as law enforcement dealt with an assault suspect who barricaded himself inside a vehicle.
The incident began around 1 a.m. when deputies attempted to contact a motorist, who was possibly parked at the time, for a traffic violation, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Lt. Zeko said.
Zeko said the suspect may have an arrest warrant issued and assaulted deputies with a fire extinguisher when they tried to approach him.
The deputy was not injured but the suspect eventually barricaded himself inside the vehicle prompting the hours-long standoff.
PCH was closed between Heathercliff Road and Busch Drive due to the standoff, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department posted on X, formerly Twitter, just after 5 a.m.
Aerial video from Sky5 at 7 a.m. showed the white van with its roof open still on the side of the highway as Sheriff’s Department vehicles were stationed behind it.
A SWAT team was also called to the scene to help resolve the situation.
The roadway was finally reopened shortly before 10:30 a.m. when the suspect was taken into custody, the Sheriff’s Department posted in an update.