'Armed' Standoff Results in Arrest, Delays at Orlando Airport

A man with a fake gun was taken into custody at Orlando International Airport late Tuesday night after an hours-long standoff in a rental car area.

The dramatic scene unfolded at the Dollar-Thrifty rental car counter on Level 1, Side A of the airport. Witnesses reported a Thrifty employee running from the garage area yelling, "There is a guy out there with a gun. Take cover. He has a huge gun."

No shots were fired, and the gun was later determined to be fake, but a portion of the airport was closed off and the Federal Aviation Administration put a brief ground stop on flights arriving at Orlando International. Some flights were held at point of departure.

By 9:30, Orlando police had cornered the man, identified as Michael Wayne Pettigrew, a former Marine:

The suspect pointed the gun at officers and said "shoot me, shoot me!" said @ChiefJohnMina.  This is  the gun he pointed at police. pic.twitter.com/nFFmi6sDXp

— Orlando Police (@OrlandoPolice) May 31, 2017

A crisis negotiator was brought in, and by 10:08 police tweeted that Pettigrew was in custody. Police added there was no rush to arrest the man once he was contained.

Our main objective was getting him contained & that happened very quickly. Contain situation & bring to a peaceful resolution, which we did pic.twitter.com/8D1AiHSMdI

— Orlando Police (@OrlandoPolice) May 31, 2017

Florida Gov. Rick Scott released the following statement after the ordeal.

"I have remained in constant communication with City of Orlando Police Chief John Mina, Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings, Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Rick Swearingen, and FDLE Special Agent in Charge Danny Banks regarding the incident tonight at Orlando International Airport,” he said.

“I want to thank law enforcement for their quick response and efforts to put the suspect in custody and keep families safe. The people of Orlando are lucky to have such dedicated officers protecting them each day."