Santa Fe police locked down two schools and a south-central neighborhood Tuesday afternoon after an armed man barricaded himself in a house. The nearly five-hour standoff also inconvenienced residents of the area and even passengers on the Rail Runner Express.

The man, whom acquaintances identified as Peter Sandoval, called 911 about 12:35 p.m. and said he was a former Naval gunner and was armed with a hunting rifle at a residence in the 2000 block of Camino Lado.

"I saw him come out and he had a rifle and he fired the rifle four or five times into the air, and then went back in the house," said Sandoval's neighbor Bob Keesing. "I decided he was being stupid, so I went about my business and then I heard the police coming."

Keesing said Sandoval shared the home with one male and one female roommate, and he had been living in the home for a few years.

Officers, the city's SWAT team and crisis negotiators converged on the neighborhood just across Siringo Road from Santa Fe High School. According to Police Chief Aric Wheeler, negotiators, speaking to Sandoval by phone, were able to convince him to come out of the home around 5:30 p.m. He said Sandoval emerged unarmed and was taken to Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center, where he is undergoing evaluation.

A .270 caliber rifle was confiscated from the home, and four spent casings were collected from the front yard of the residence, Wheeler said.

At this time, Sandoval is not facing any significant criminal charges, Wheeler said, noting that shooting a weapon within city limits is only a misdemeanor.

Police could not confirm Sandoval's military background or what set him off, Wheeler said.

According to online court records, Sandoval pleaded guilty to aggravated battery in 2002.

The area near Sandoval's home was blocked off for most of the afternoon, and residents were advised to stay inside.

State Rep. Jim Trujillo, who lives a few streets away from where the incident took place, said he left his home around noon to get gas and stop at the hardware store.

"By the time I came back it was all blocked and they wouldn't let me in, so I had been staying at McDonald's," said Trujillo, who was still waiting to get home at 5 p.m. Residents were allowed back in the neighborhood sometime after 6 p.m.

One of Sandoval's neighbors, Maureen Montclair, said she had received several phone calls from the police department warning about an armed person in the neighborhood and that she should not come outside her home.

"I'm a little nervous," said Montclair who was shaken up over the incident, which she could see from her window. "The guys (law enforcement officers) were swarming right around my house with their weapons."

Santa Fe High School and DeVargas Middle School were both locked down initially, although students were eventually allowed to leave, Wheeler said.

The incident caused the Rail Runner Express to suspend service through the area and bused passengers between the N.M. 599 station and the South Capitol and Santa Fe Depot stops.

"They should call it the Rail Bummer, because it bums me out," said Luis Vigil, who was visiting from Seattle and was riding the Rail Runner from Albuquerque. "I've been wanting to ride this for three years — well, as long as it's been here. I come down here all the time from Seattle, Spokane, and then I get this."

Dan Vance, a University of New Mexico student who rides the Rail Runner at least twice a week, said he didn't mind the minor inconvenience in the name of safety.

Montclair said aside from minor incidents, nothing like Tuesday's standoff has happened in her neighborhood before.

"I was watching the news noticing that next to Nevada, New Mexico is the most dangerous state for burglaries, rapes, shootings and so on," Montclair said. "I went, 'Well, nothing happens in this neighborhood.' I was saying back to the TV, 'Nothing happens here. This is a quiet area in the middle of town.' "

Jason Auslander contributed to this story.

Contact Veronica Cruz at 986-3042 or vcruz@sfnewmexican.com.