Barricaded Inside Waldorf Astoria, Man Fired Gun During Beverly Hills Standoff

BEVERLY HILLS, CA — An armed man who barricaded himself inside his Beverly Hills hotel room was arrested Thursday, according to the Beverly Hills Police Department.

Police responded to the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills in Beverly Hills before 11 a.m. after reports of a man with a gun on a balcony. After knocking on the man's door, hotel security heard the man yell "I'm going to shoot through the door," according to police.

A BHPD drone deployed to observe the armed man, later identified as Joseph Leonardi, on the hotel balcony. Leonardi, a felon, fired several rounds inside the hotel room, police said.

As BHPD crisis negotiators prepared to communicate with Leonardi, he willingly surrendered.
Leonardi was booked on suspicion of a felon in possession of a firearm and negligent discharge of a gun, police said.

Portions of Santa Monica and Wilshire boulevards were closed in the area as part of the police response, according to the BHPD.

The roads were reopened around 1 p.m. Detectives remained on the scene to continue their investigation, according to police.