(EL PASO COUNTY, Colo.) — The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office (EPSO) said a domestic violence suspect surrendered to police after SWAT responded to the scene in the overnight hours of Thursday, April 24.

According to EPSO, on Wednesday, April 23, just before midnight, EPSO got a call about a domestic violence assault at a home in the 1400 block of Hathaway Drive near North Powers and Omaha Boulevards. The victim told the Sheriff’s Office that they had run from the home after being choked several times by the suspect, identified as 36-year-old Mark Anthony Leon, however, a child remained inside the home with Leon.

Mark Anthony Leon, Courtesy: El Paso County Sheriff’s Office

Mark Anthony Leon, Courtesy: El Paso County Sheriff’s Office

Deputies responded to the scene, and when they arrived, Leon started yelling through the door and refused to leave the home. Because the child was still inside the home and Leon’s uncooperation and aggressive action, deputies called EPSO’s SWAT Team to the scene, who arrived at around 3:30 a.m. on Thursday

EPSO Crisis Negotiators started working to establish communication with Leon, and about 90 minutes after communication was established, Leon surrendered at around 6:30 a.m. The child was found inside the home unharmed.

Leon was booked into the El Paso County Jail on the following charges:

Assault in the Second Degree

Assault in the Third Degree

Harassment

Domestic Violence

“I am grateful to my Patrol, SWAT, our trained negotiators, and deputies for their quick response to this incident,” said El Paso County Sheriff Joseph Roybal. “There is no doubt their training, preparation, and actions ensured the suspect remained calm and ultimately surrendered peacefully, without harming himself or the innocent life involved. My deputies do an exceptional job, and I am incredibly proud of their work. At the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, our mission is to hold criminals accountable and provide justice to victims in the Pikes Peak region.”