BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) – As the clock struck 10 a.m. Friday, two explosive booms rumbled through Rodenberg Avenue.
The doors of a unit at Oasis Apartments in Biloxi were blown off the hinges. After a 19-hour standoff with a man holding a pregnant woman hostage, it only took 5 minutes for officers to rescue the woman and put Joshua Drake Ervin in handcuffs.
“It came to a point where the male suspect and the female had separated. They were in separate rooms,” Biloxi Police Department Lieutenant Candace Young said. “Our emergency services units felt that was the best time to move.”
Valerie Sidney owns a salon just a block away from the apartment complex. She was working Thursday afternoon when police first arrived on the scene. She abruptly stopped working when she felt the vibrations from the blasts that brought the standoff to an end on Friday.
“We heard two loud booms, so we immediately thought, ‘Oh my god. Did they shoot? What happened?” Sidney said. “I have been here for 23 years, and I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Police say the woman that was held hostage is six to eight months pregnant with Ervin’s child and was not hurt. Still, the police rushed her to the hospital to check her and the baby after the ordeal.
Lt. Candace Young says an outcome like this is worth the wait.
“It was the best-case scenario. Our number one priority is the preservation of life,” Lt. Young said. “Outside of him walking out on his own and letting her go on her own, this is the best outcome we could’ve hoped for.”
Sidney says she was impressed with the skill of all law enforcement agencies involved. The outcome of the operation makes her feel safer in Biloxi.
“I do appreciate being in their presence and doing what they did,” Sidney said. “If I ever have any problems, I know who to call.”
Ervin is charged with kidnapping and aggravated domestic assault. He is being held at the Harrison County Adult Detention Center with a $500,000 bond.
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