Shooting suspect in custody after 7-hour standoff in McKeesport

A man is in police custody following an overnight standoff in McKeesport that lasted more than seven hours.

Allegheny County Police on Tuesday charged Michael Paul Plopi, 42, of McKeesport, with attempted homicide, aggravated assault and a firearms violation in connection with the standoff, court records show.

He had not been arraigned as of Tuesday morning, according to court records. No attorney was listed.

McKeesport police responded to a ShotSpotter notification at 7:25 p.m. Monday in the 1200 block of Pirl Street, where Plopi lives, according to a criminal complaint filed in the case. Soon after, first responders found a female outside the house suffering from gunshot wounds to the abdomen, legs, buttocks and hands.

Police reported that additional shots, possibly four, were fired at the McKeesport officers who responded to the scene, the complaint said.

Plopi barricaded himself and his adult daughter, who police did not name, inside his Pirl Street house during part of the shooting, only to release her to police following negotiations, the complaint said.

The daughter told police that Plopi and the gunshot victim were “intimate partners” and in a relationship for about 1½ years, the complaint said.

The gunshot victim was about to go to work when she and Plopi began arguing, the complaint said. The daughter told police Plopi then shot the victim three times before his gun jammed. He then fired a fourth shot at the woman, who fell over the balcony of the house.

The gunshot victim was taken to UPMC Presbyterian. She was in critical condition but expected to survive, police said.

The Allegheny County Police Department's SWAT Team is on scene of an active stand-off situation along Pirl Street in McKeesport.

Just before 7:30 pm this date, McKeesport Police responded to a shot spotter notification in the 1200 block of Pirl Street. pic.twitter.com/622TivXCyZ

— Allegheny County PD (@AlleghenyCoPD) September 5, 2023

Allegheny County SWAT officers also responded to the scene. County police said around 3 a.m. Tuesday that the suspect had surrendered peacefully and was in custody.

Officials told Tribune-Review news partner WTAE-TV that state police assisted with specialized equipment that also helped lead to the suspect’s decision to surrender.

The complaint said that Plopi cannot legally own a firearm because of his criminal history.

Plopi served about seven years in prison on a drug charge, state Department of Corrections spokesperson Maria Bivens told the Tribune-Review on Tuesday.

Plopi entered SCI-Green on Jan. 23, 2006, and was paroled on April 8, 2013, Bivens said. He violated his parole and returned to SCI-Pittsburgh, where he was incarcerated from June 2013 to September 2014.