Man surrenders after remaining barricaded in home for nine hours

3:45 PM UPDATE - PORT ARTHUR - A 28-year-old man is jailed on bonds totalling $1 million after Port Arthur Police negotiators talked him into releasing his 2-year-old niece and later surrendering following a 9 hour SWAT standoff at his mother's home on 61st Street in Port Acres, where he had guns and what he claimed were homemade bombs.

Walter Ryan Moore is charged with aggravated kidnapping and three counts of deadly assault on a peace officer. He's behind bars at the Jefferson County Jail. Judge Bob Wortham set bond at $1 million.

He claimed to have two homemade bombs and several weapons inside. The bomb was really a propane cylinder placed at the door, according to investigators. Police say he threatened to shoot the cylinder and cause it to explode. According to investigators, he pointed a gun at officers during the standoff.

Police say they got Moore to release some of his weapons, which included shotguns and a rifle, by giving him cigarettes he requested and even chicken nuggets. Their goal was to keep open the lines of communication and ensure the toddler was safe. 

(EARLIER REPORT) PORT ARTHUR - A man released his 2-year-old niece from his mother's home where he has barricaded himself since early Wednesday morning with what he says are guns and two homemade bombs, according to information provided to KFDM News by Port Arthur Police Chief Mark Blanton.

Investigators say the girl appears to be unhurt and probably didn't realize what was happening.

The SWAT team has surrounded the home and officers have blocked the area along 61st Street in Port Acres while negotiators continue talking on the phone with the 28-year-old man and urging him to give up.  

The 28-year-old man claims he has several guns and two homemade bombs, according to KFDM Anchor Ashley Gaston reporting from the scene.

The SWAT team is trying to talk the man into surrendering.

KFDM anchor Ashley Gaston is at the scene. Stay with KFDM and kfdm.com for updates.

The Port Arthur ISD has evacuated students at a nearby school.

The man released the girl from her grandmother's home shortly after 2 p.m. Wednesday.

Port Arthur Police responded to a call at about 6:30 a.m. Wednesday of an intoxicated man causing a disturbance at a home in the 2500 block of 61st Street in Port Acres. Police say once they arrived the man barricaded himself inside the home with a 2-year-old still inside. He has several weapons, including rifles and a handgun. Investigators say the man claims to have two homemade bombs. Police called in a bomb squad from Houston.

Constable Eddie Collins told KFDM News the man's mother lives in the home with her 2-year-old granddaughter. The child is the man's niece, according to Collins. He said this isn't the first time the man has caused a disturbance with his family. Collins told us the woman ran outside when the disturbance began early Wednesday morning.

Collins said the man surrendered a shotgun in exchange for cigarettes. He still has two rifles and a handgun. Later Wednesday the man said he'd give up more weapons in exchange for chicken nuggets.

Officers have blocked access to the street and the surrounding area and they're urging the public to stay away from the area unless absolutely necessary.

The Memorial 9th Grade campus is near the scene. Police tell KFDM News the Port Arthur ISD has evacuated the campus and sent students to Memorial High School.

Stay with KFDM and kfdm.com for updates.