Massachusetts police said a group of heavily armed men who refused to carry out orders from law enforcement officers was captured this morning.
"We have several armed people in that sector of Interstate 95.
They refuse to comply with orders to provide their information and lay down their weapons,
" state security forces said on Twitter.
In a statement, Wakefield police said about eight men armed with rifles and pistols exited two vehicles on Interstate 95 on Saturday morning. Later, authorities said a total of eleven men were arrested.
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According to the authorities, these people claimed to belong to a group
"that does not recognize our laws"
and went to a wooded area.
Massachusetts State Police first arrested two suspects and officials advised Wakefield and Reading residents to keep their doors closed and shelter in their homes.
"They did not make threats, but these men should be considered armed and dangerous," Wakefield police said.
The confrontation began around 2 a.m. when police noticed two cars stopped on I-95 with their hazard lights on, authorities said at a news conference Saturday.
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The men were dressed in
military clothing and carried long guns and pistols
, said Christopher Mason, a state police colonel.
The men refused to lay down their weapons or comply with the orders of the authorities, claiming to be part of a group "that does not recognize our laws," police said.
They headed into a wooded area, where authorities arrested two men first.
Officials used negotiators to interact with the other suspects.
"Time is our ally in this situation and we are going to use it," Mason said of the incident.
The confrontation shut down part of I-95 in Wakefield, causing heavy traffic as people hit the road for the July 4 weekend holiday.
In Massachusetts, Interstate 95 runs from the Rhode Island line, around Boston to New Hampshire.
Wakefield is just east of where Interstate 95 and 93 meet north of Boston.
Police continue to inspect the road and nearby wooded areas.
With information from AP and NBC Boston