Bexar County investigators say that 19-year-old Lonnie Ellison is wanted for murder and he was the subject of a Thursday night SWAT standoff in west Bexar County.
“I was freaked out,” said one woman who lives near the home where the explosive incident took place on the 3700 block of Bisley Pass.
Watching a decontamination team flush their faces with water from a garden hose Friday afternoon, the retired military veteran said, "They're trying to get the burning sensation out of their eyes."
She said that she remembers the sensation well from her military training.
"They have to just keep running water for about five minutes," the woman said.
The restoration crew was addressing damage done to the home when a Bexar County SWAT team broke virtually every window, lobbing tear gas when they believed a wanted felon was in the home.
The ordeal started around 10 p.m. Thursday when deputies were called for a couple arguing.
"The caller indicated that a male and a female were seen arguing on the front yard and it apparently got a little bit physical and the two individuals then went inside the residence," Bexar County Deputy Johnny Garcia described
Deputy Garcia noted that when deputies arrived, the woman ran from the home asking for help, so they secured the area and began trying to contact the man and get him out of the house. Garcia also said that negotiators tried to reach the man by telephone but used a loudspeaker when they couldn’t get an answer.
For hours, neighbors said that they heard a negotiator trying to appeal to the man.
The booming loudspeakers magnified the message:
“I need you to come to the front door and come outside and talk to me. We're not going away. We're not leaving. Nobody's here to hurt you. All we need to do is talk to you, Lonnie.”
When talking failed to produce results, Garcia said that the team decided to try a different approach.
"The SWAT team deployed some diversionary tactics, utilizing gas into the residence, hoping to get some sort of reaction from him,” Garcia explained.
“We just heard pop, pop, pop, pop! And we were like, 'Oh they're shooting!' because we're both military vets so we're familiar with certain sounds,” one neighbor said. “We thought it was gunshots and I guess that's when they put the tear gas in there and the glass was shattering.”
When deputies finally made it inside the house, they found it empty, and they have been looking for Lonnie Ellison ever since.
Several neighbors said that they are worried because the man is still free.
“I was just telling my husband, ‘I'm ready to move and I don't want to be a part of anything like this because I came here to be in a quiet neighborhood because I just retired from the military a couple of years ago,’” the woman said.
Because she has military experience overseas, she said it’s important to feel safe here.
“The last thing you want to do or feel is unsafe in your own home, and it was enough to freak me out, so we probably won't be here too much longer,” the neighbor said.
Investigators say that Ellison is facing one murder charge and two counts of aggravated assault for a previous incident that is being handled by the San Antonio Police Department.
While the cleanup continues, the neighbors say they don’t believe the man will return, but they will remain on their guard until he is captured.
Deputy Garcia said that law enforcement still hoping for a peaceful outcome.
“We are hoping maybe he would contact us or want to come to us peacefully,” he said.
The non-emergency number for the Bexar County sheriff's dispatcher is 210-335-6000.