PCH in Malibu shut down; police in standoff with man barricaded inside van

Pacific Coast Highway at Point Dume in Malibu was closed Wednesday morning during a standoff between Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies and a man barricaded in a vehicle.

Deputies from the Malibu/Lost Hills Station spotted a vehicle with expired registration in a no-parking zone on PCH about 1 a.m., according to the department.

When deputies approached to tell the man inside that the van was parked illegally, he was uncooperative and combative, sheriff’s officials said.

Deputies checked the man’s license plate information and discovered he had a no-bail felony warrant, sheriff’s spokesperson Adam Zeko said.

“When they went to make an arrest, he resisted and barricaded himself in his vehicle and assaulted the deputies by using a fire extinguisher,” Zeko said.

Deputies then deemed the incident a barricaded situation and called in other resources, including “our special weapons team, who are on the scene right now,” he said.

Deputies closed the road, a main travel artery for commuters through Malibu, between Heathercliff Road and Busch Drive about 5 a.m. “due to an assault with a deadly weapon suspect barricaded in a vehicle,” the Lost Hills Station said on social media.

Video from the scene broadcast by KABC-TV showed deputies with guns drawn surrounding a white van that was stopped at an angle on the side of the highway. A man could be seen inside the van, which had its pop-up roof raised.

The road was still blocked as of 7:55 a.m.

Commuters were asked to avoid the area until further notice.

This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.