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Smithfield man charged in armed standoff

By Josh Krysak 3 min read

A Smithfield man, who surrendered to state police after an armed standoff in Georges Township Wednesday, was charged Thursday in the incident and could face additional charges after police uncovered a massive weapons cache at his home and in a nearby storage unit. Raymond Conway Baker III, 44, of 13 Rose Circle in the Strickland Estates was charged with aggravated assault, simple assault, terroristic threats, recklessly endangering another person and harassment before Magisterial District Judge Dwight Shaner following the standoff.

Baker holed up in his mobile home Wednesday afternoon as dozens of state police troopers and emergency officials surrounded his home.

He eventually surrendered around 9 p.m., police said.

Late Thursday, state police trooper George Mrosko said that investigators had uncovered a hoard of additional weapons at Baker’s house and more weapons and four suspected explosive devices in a storage unit rented by Baker on Route 166 near Masontown.

Mrosko said a bomb squad from Hershey was en route to the storage unit Thursday evening to examine the suspected bombs and to search the shed for any additional explosive devices.

In the home, investigators discovered 21 guns, including a fully automatic M-16 machine gun, Mrosko said.

Because of the high-powered weapon, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have also joined the investigation.

Mrosko said it has not been determined if Baker was licensed to own the weapons found but added that police “found a lot more weapons in the storage unit,” but could not divulge any information on the weapons as the search continued.

The standoff Wednesday evening began in the housing complex off Walnut Hill Road after an argument over stress and financial worries with his wife, Shelley Baker, around 4:50 p.m. according to police.

Mrosko said in the affidavit of probable cause that during the argument Baker struck his wife in the face and began screaming obscenities at her.

Mrosko said he then retrieved a shotgun from his bedroom and pointed the weapon at Shelley Baker’s head and said that he would kill her.

At that point, Shelley Baker and her two children fled the residence and contacted police.

Baker then barricaded himself in the trailer, refusing to submit to police, Mrosko said.

Mrosko said in the affidavit that “based on Raymond Baker making threats of violence with a weapon, still being armed in the residence and refusing to surrender” police were forced to activate the State Police Special Emergency Response Team

Mrosko confirmed late Wednesday that Baker was armed during the standoff and that several weapons were found in the home following the incident.

Around 8 p.m., several state troopers could be seen staked out at various points around the home and one trooper had a rifle set up on top of a parked car nearby, pointed toward the house.

Amanda Porter, Baker’s stepdaughter, said her 15-year-old sister was cooking in the house around 3 p.m. when she accidentally caught the stove on fire.

Porter said Baker that incident sparked the argument and Baker then began yelling and the situation escalated out of control.

By 8:30 p.m., more than 25 police cruisers and vans clogged the gravel roadways in the mobile home park.

About 50 residents gathered in clusters outside Tiff’s Market near the entrance to the housing complex as troopers monitored the Bakers’ gray-and-white home, prior to his surrender.

Baker was taken to Highlands Hospital in Connellsville where he voluntarily committed himself, Mrosko said in his report.

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