MEXICO – After more than a 14-hour standoff, police took Norman “Bo” Thompson into custody in Mexico late Thursday night.

At about 11:30 p.m., Maine State Police Tactical Team members found Thompson in the basement of his mother’s Oxford Street House, Mexico Police Chief Jim Theriault said.

“He is not injured, and everybody is safe and he is on his way to Oxford County Jail,” Theriault said.

“They searched the whole house and found him in the last little nook that they looked at.”

Police at least twice fired tear gas into the building, and Theriault said remants of it were still lingering near the scene.

“The gas is terrible out here,” he said.

When asked if Thompson would be free on bail soon, the chief said. “Don’t ask me, that’s a question for the District Attorney.”

Thompson, 35, of Lewiston, the suspected car thief who was collared by a Sun Journal photographer in Lewiston last week, kept police at bay for 14 hours Thursday.

He was involved in a standoff with police at the corner of Granite and Maple streets Thursday, Thompson’s brother Allen Thompson said. The home belongs to Thompson’s mother, Sharron Fuller, and Thompson was believed to be there visiting her.

More than a dozen local police, Oxford County sheriff’s and state police cars surrounded the Oxford Street home starting just after noon.

Starting at 5:30 p.m., police could be heard firing rounds believed to be tear gas canisters near and at the house. Police are telling Thompson that they don’t want to hurt him, but they do want him to come out the front door and surrender.

“There is no one else in the house with him,” Department of Public Safety Spokesman Stephen McCausland said. “Initial reports that we are getting is that he may be armed. So the tactical teams along with negotiators will attempt to resolve this in a safe manner.”

“We’ve been asking for help for him. They’ve had him in jail two or three times and they keep letting him out. They should put him in drug rehab. He hasn’t been out (of jail) for more than six months,” Allen Thompson said.

Norman Thompson’s family was upset last week when the court released him on personal recognizance after his arrest on an outstanding warrant, wishing instead that he’d been ordered to remain in jail where he could receive treatment.

“He’s retarded, he is mentally retarded and he is high on crack,” Thompson’s older brother Allen Thompson said.  Norman Thompson called his brother early today saying he was going to commit suicide, Allen said.

“He tells me, ‘I love you,’ and ‘I’m going to do away with myself.’”

Allen Thompson said he was concerned the police were out to kill his brother because the courts won’t keep him locked in jail, even after the family has begged them judges to do so.

“They are out to kill him, to shoot him because the courts won’t hold him,” Allen Thompson said.

Allen Thompson described a scene swarming with law officers, many in military-styled uniforms.

He said some members of  the tactical team were using ropes to climb over walls while others were crawling through the bushes of a nearby embankment.

A report to police said Norman Thompson was carrying a firearm when he entered the building but Allen Thompson said his brother is not armed.

Fuller, Allen and Norman’s mother, also said there are no firearms in her apartment.

Allen also said there was a dog in the apartment. He said police asked them for a floor plan of the apartment but would not allow them to go to the apartment and try to talk to Norman.

“This is ridiculous,” Allen said. “They are dealing with a kid that is not playing with a full deck.”

Allen Thompson said he didn’t believe his brother presented a threat to police as both of his ankles were injured when he jumped from a third floor porch in Lewiston last while trying to escape police there.

“He is hobbling, he can’t even walk straight,” Allen Thompson said.

Fuller was crying when she said her younger son came into her apartment this morning and she told him he couldn’t be there but he didn’t leave.

“He come in the back door and I told him, ‘What are you doing here?’” Fuller said.

She said Norman was unable to get the medicines he needs for his mental health problems but was still doing drugs apparently.

“He’s slow, he’s retarded…he doesn’t understand,” Allen Thompson said of his brother.

Norman Thompson has a long criminal history, dating back to 1990, for multiple misdemeanor assault and forgery conviction, and at least one felony burglary conviction.

State Police tactical team members could be seen changing into their uniforms from their vehicles parked on the street’s steep incline, and Rumford Police Officer Tracey Higley could be seen with a rifle aimed at the house in which Norman Thompson is believed to be.

As police were organizing their response, State Police Trooper Bill Plourde interviewed Allen Thompson while other officers checked the doors of nearby buildings. Two members of the Mexico Historical Society, whose building is at the corner of Oxford Street, could be seen peeking out the window at the officers below.

Meroby Elementary School and Mountain Valley Middle School were ordered to lock-down mode during the standoff.

As details develop they will be posted here.