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Members of the Patrol Division arrived in under one minute and observed one of the possible suspects run back into the residence. The tenant of the apartment was able to get out of the residence and alerted police that two other people were in the home prior to the armed suspects entering.

Pittsfield Police Respond to Home Invasion, Possible Hostage Situation

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Pittsfield Police arrested two men on Broad St. at the scene of a reported home invasion after activating the Special Response Team
 
Pittsfield Police responded to 18 Broad St. around 6:30 pm on Friday to a reported home invasion involving two masked armed individuals.
 
Members of the Patrol Division arrived in under one minute and observed one of the possible suspects run back into the residence. The tenant of the apartment was able to get out of the residence and alerted police that two other people were in the home prior to the armed suspects entering.
 
Attempts to contact or locate those individuals were unsuccessful resulting in authorities having to consider this incident a potential hostage situation. Berkshire County Special Response Team Commander John Murphy was notified. He responded to the scene and activated the Special Response Team (SRT). 
 
Broad Street was shut down in the immediate area and a perimeter was set up around the residence.
 
Around 8 pm two men exited the residence and were taken into custody by police for questioning. Another person believed to be in the home at the time of the incident was treated by EMS for a facial injury.
 
As of late Friday night detective bureau, drug unit and crime scene services were still in the process of identifying those involved and the roles they played in this incident. 
 
Police report that this was not a random incident and there is no threat to the public. The Detective Bureau continues to speak with witnesses and review area video surveillance.
 
The majority of the Pittsfield Police Department's resources were committed to this incident. As a result, the department requested mutual aid from neighboring towns. Members of the Dalton Police Department, Lanesborough Police Department and Massachusetts State Police assisted with the response to police calls for service within the city during this time. 
 
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Police Department Detective Bureau (413-448-9705), call the Tip line (413-448-9706), or send us a tip via text message by texting "PITTIP" and your message to 847411 (TIP411)
 
 
 

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Housing Secretary Applauds County's Collaborative Housing Efforts

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
PITTSFIELD, Mass.—State leadership recognized the collaborative spirit that drives Berkshire County to address hard-hitting issues with a multi-faceted approach.
 
On Thursday, Secretary of Housing and Livable Communities Ed Augustus visited Pittsfield Housing Authority (PHA) and Berkshire Community Action Council's central office.  
 
His overarching observation? The collaborative spirit that surrounds nonprofit providers, state, federal, and local government.
 
"It's not about turf, it's not about fiefdom, it's about who you're trying to serve and the difference you're trying to make with your targeted population," he said, adding that there is still a lot of work to do and they will need the state's help with funding and technical assistance.
 
PHA owns and administers public housing for over 200 families and more than 400 individual tenants.  Augustus walked through Columbia Arms, which houses elders and disabled community members through income-based rental apartments.
 
Earlier this year, Tina Danzy was hired as the executive director.  During a private meeting, she and other PHA representatives discussed the city's aging housing stock, CARES Act funding increases, and community coordinators' positive impact.
 
Augustus explained that both the housing authority and state are enthused about community coordinators, which track issues and assist with developing programs and events.  
 
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