RUMFORD —A local man wanted on an armed robbery charge was arrested Wednesday night after local and state police surrounded an apartment building at 307 Franklin St., Police Chief Tony Milligan said Thursday.

Brian L. Welch, 37, who police believed had multiple firearms, complied with orders from the state police tactical team to leave the second-floor apartment, Milligan said in a news release. Police seized firearms and ammunition from the apartment.

Welch was taken to the Oxford County Jail in Paris and booked on charges of armed robbery, criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon, reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon and theft, the chief said. He is scheduled to appear in 11th District Court in Paris on Friday.

Milligan said the armed robbery charge stemmed from an incident at a Paris residence Jan. 8, and state and local police worked to locate Welch, who was a suspect.

On Wednesday evening, officers observed his vehicle in the driveway of 307 Franklin St., confirmed he was on the second floor and called the state police tactical team. They also evacuated the first floor tenant.

Ten minutes after Welch was ordered to come out unarmed and with his hands up, he complied, Milligan said.

A section of the street was closed for an hour during the incident, the chief said.

“These types of operations can go many ways,” Milligan said. “Surrounding a potentially armed and dangerous suspect and utilizing a specialized team and trained negotiators to talk the suspect out is, in most cases, the safest way to affect an arrest.”

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