‘I was stressed,’ says neighbor of North Providence standoff with barricaded man

NORTH PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Residents in a North Providence neighborhood were ordered to shelter in place during a standoff, while a man barricaded himself in a home for nearly 20 hours.

Police Chief Alfredo Ruggerio said Gino Rotondo, 55, barricaded himself and his wife with an AR-15 inside their Stephanie Drive home Wednesday night. He surrendered to police at about 8 a.m. Thursday.

Neighbors in adjacent homes were asked to remain inside while police communicated with Rotondo.

“I was stressed,” said Georgette Hallak, who lives two houses down. “Police said inside for your safety.”

Another neighbor told ABC 6 News that he was coming home from work to find that his street was blocked off.

Henry Giraldo said he only interacted with Rotondo when he first moved into the neighborhood.

“He doesn’t really interact with us, I see him here and there,” said Giraldo, who moved into the neighborhood a year ago. “We have experienced a lot of yelling from this house from previous days.”

Giraldo said he was not aware of Rotondo’s lengthy criminal record that includes charges for simple assault and possession of controlled substances.

“It was very frustrating, but at the end of the day I’m happy its over,” Giraldo said.