A man armed with a knife who barricaded himself inside a Denny's restaurant in Kamloops has been taken into custody, Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018.

(SHELBY THEVENOT / iNFOnews.ca)

KAMLOOPS - An arrest has been made after a lengthy standoff at a Denny's Restaurant in downtown Kamloops this afternoon.

Kamloops RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Jodi Shelkie says the 29-year-old Kamloops man, who had barricaded himself inside the restaurant, was taken into custody at approximately 2:45 p.m. today, Aug. 2. He was previously known to police.

Witnesses told iNFOnews.ca they saw police deploy tear gas and flash bangs into the restaurant several times, but the suspect didn't come out. Part of the nearby Sandman Inn was also evacuated when the standoff began, witnesses say.

Police said at roughly 4 a.m. this morning the man had made a threat after receiving his bill, which prompted staff and customers to evacuate, leaving the man alone inside.

Shelkie says when police attended, the suspect closed all of the blinds in the restaurant and exited the restaurant once.

"Many attempts throughout the day were made to communicate with the suspect were made by a police negotiator, to no avail," she says in the release. "The suspect had closed the blinds to all of the windows and only exited the building once.  He was brandishing a knife and when he saw police officers, he went back inside of the restaurant."

As a precautionary measure, Shelkie says the natural gas was shut off to the restaurant. 

Shelkie says the area around Denny’s will be closed to motorists and pedestrians until officers can secure the building and make sure it's safe.

All investigation information will be forwarded to Crown counsel who will determine what charges are appropriate.

— This story was updated at 7:41 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018, to include new information from Kamloops RCMP.

— This story was updated at 11:49 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018 to include video.

— This story was updated at  2:52 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018 to include new information from RCMP and witnesses.

— This story was updated at  4:09 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018 to include new information from RCMP.

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