(Image source from: Phoenix police finds barricaded home empty})

Phoenix police on Wednesday discovered to its chagrin that the house suspected to be barricaded with an armed man inside was in fact empty. For nearly three hours the officials carried on an operation that turned out to be a wild goose chase.

Phoenix Police Department spokesman Sgt. Steve Martos, reportedly said that the department received a call on Wednesday from a home located near Fifth Street and Roeser. The caller said that someone fired a weapon at his backyard during an incident of domestic-violence.

Police was told that the man was inside the house and the department's SWAT unit was pushed in to try to talk with the man.

During the operation five houses were evacuated and numerous police vehicles were placed in the neighbourhood to prevent people from entering or exiting the area. After trying to contact the sucpected man inside the home for several hours with no success, police broke into the house, only to find it empty.

(Picture Source: extras.mnginteractive.com)

(AW: Pratima Tigga)