AUBURN, Calif. — A man is facing charges after he allegedly violated a restraining order and held a woman hostage in Tuolumne County, Wednesday.
According to the Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office, it started with two 911 'hang-ups' around 2 p.m. on Phoenix Lake Road.
Upon arrival, deputies spoke with a woman who said she got into an argument with her boyfriend, 47-year-old Michael Snell, who had a court order preventing him from contacting her.
The woman told deputies Snell had another woman trapped inside the bathroom. Deputies called the second woman who confirmed she was being held hostage.
The release says deputies spoke with Snell around 3 p.m. and he refused to leave the home or allow the second woman to leave. He then asked to speak with a hostage negotiator before claiming he had a gun and said he’d use the second woman as his ‘bargaining chip.’
SWAT arrived and negotiated with Snell for hours before the woman was seen exiting the home around 8 p.m.
SWAT entered the home and detained Snell in the bathroom. He was taken to the Dambacher Detention Center and booked on suspicion of being a prohibited person in possession of firearms, false imprisonment, and violation of a protective order.
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