Suspect dead after search warrant turns into SWAT standoff in South Bend

SAINT JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. -- Police have identified the suspect in Wednesday's deadly SWAT situation in South Bend.

Thirty-five-year-old Justin Hufkens was found dead inside a home along Eldora Court off Lincolnway East.

Indiana State Police say they were attempting to serve a search warrant at Hufkens' residence for a drug investigation they've been working on for the last two months.

As police closed in on the home, the situation quickly escalated.

"We waited for the suspect to come out of the home to try to take him into custody out there, he took off and led us on a foot pursuit of about a half of a block and then got back into his residence," explains Indiana State Police Sergeant Ted Bohner.

Once inside, Sgt. Bohner says Hufkens opened fire.

"He fired multiple rounds at swat team members as they moved in," says Bohner. "SWAT team members did return fire due to this, and then it became a barricaded subject situation." 

The SWAT team was outside the home trying to negotiate with Hufkens, but he refused to budge.

That whole time a portion of busy Lincolnway East near IUSB was blocked off to traffic with a large police presence from multiple local agencies.

Next door neighbors waiting to get back to their homes shared what they saw and heard. 

"We live right by what's all going on, I seen a big ole' thing of smoke go up, I thought it was the church on fire, so we ran out of the house. We ran over there and we had seen squad cars show up, detectives, they said shots fired they moved us way back and then they brought in an army tank with a big pole things that went through the windows, they're yelling 'Come out, come out,' and the shots began to fire again so they moved us out of the way," explains Mark Johnson, a next door neighbor.

The negotiations lasted about two hours until police heard a single gunshot from inside the residence. 

"Then, SWAT team members moved in and did find the suspect deceased of suspected gunshot wounds," Bohner says.

Neighbors say they're surprised by the whole ordeal, but more so, who was at the center of it all. 

"I've seen him out, talked to him before and when he had church, he used our parking lot when some friends would come over and visit, so not sure what happened," says Johnson.

Sgt. Bohner says an autopsy on Hufkens will confirm whether or not the gunshot injuries were self-inflicted or came from an officer's weapon. 

ABC57 was told no one else was inside the home at the time and no officers were injured.