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Suspect Hospitalized After Suffering Medical Episode During SWAT Situation

STOWE TOWNSHIP (KDKA) -- The SWAT team was called to Stowe Township Monday afternoon when an armed man barricaded himself inside a home.

James Cercone, 50, was laying on his side as he was wheeled out of a home on West 11th Street. Neighbors watched it all unfold.

"Had him on a stretcher, hurt real bad, making noise on his side, put him in paramedics," one neighbor said.

Some neighbors say they know Cercone pretty well.

"He has had problems in the past for different things he's done. It's just hard. He's used to that kind of life and don't know how to handle being outside of it," a neighbor said.

U.S. Marshals say they went to the home to serve a warrant for a 2012 drug conviction after learning he was in the area. They say a woman answered the door and told investigators he was inside.

Cercone barricaded himself in a second-floor bedroom. SWAT was sent to the scene when they heard he could be armed with a handgun and was suicidal.

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"Crazy around here. It's never been like this before," a neighbor said.

When SWAT got inside, they found Cercone unresponsive after suffering from some sort of medical episode. He was taken to a local hospital to get checked out.

"He's a good guy. He has some issues and problems that have to be worked out," one neighbor said.

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