EPPD: Shots Fired Before East El Paso SWAT Standoff

El Paso police department negotiators say they talked a man into coming out of his apartment after he fired at least two bullets into the air late Friday night into Saturday.

Officers were called to the San Mateo apartments on the 9300 block of Viscount shortly before 11 p.m. Investigators said neighbors reported that they heard gunfire and saw a man standing outside an apartment holding a gun.

When police arrived on the scene, they said the man, identified as 46-year-old Walter Kuzmin, had gone back into the home and would not come out.

Officers then requested SWAT and the department?s Crisis Management Team to the scene. Investigators said a negotiator was able to speak with Kuzmin, on the telephone and convince him to come out of the apartment.

Police said Kuzmin exited the home around 2:30 a.m. and was arrested. He was charged with Discharging a Firearm in Certain Municipalities and booked into the El Paso county jail on a $750 bond.

No injuries were reported from the incident.