Suspect taken into custody at Provost Umphrey Law Firm

BEAUMONT - A man who walked into the Provost Umphrey Law Firm and said he needed some help pulled out a knife while he was locked in the conference room with the firm's security director.

Beaumont police took the man into custody after the employee spent half an hour listening, talking, and persuading him to hand over the weapon.

Beaumont police handcuffed this man and walked him to a patrol car outside the Provost Umphrey Law Firm where only about 30 minutes earlier, he made what investigators call some alarming statements.

Sergeant Robert Flores with BPD said the man "had a list that he needed help making of people he wanted to take out."

The security director for the law firm said, "He needed a little help, let's just say."

Help with personal problems that fell into the lap of Randy Graffagnino.

The law firm's security director has worked at Provost Umphrey for 30 years.

"He walked into the receptionist and said, 'I would like to talk to someone about a problem.' That's when she called me and said we have a suspicious character."

That suspicious character drew increasing concern from Graffagnino after he walked the man into a conference room.

"He had a hoodie on, and he kept his hands in his pockets at all times. I knew that this was not common so we went ahead and called the police and put our safety lock down on."

The doors to the conference room locked. Randy Graffagino was in the conference room alone with the man, drawing on his years of experience.

"You just have to remain calm. That is the whole trick to everything. The calmer I got, the more he settled down, but towards the end of the conversation, his temperament started escalating, and I still stayed as calm as I could."

Remaining calm, even when the man pulled out a knife.

Graffagnino talked him into giving it up.

He credits the law firm's emergency plan with helping keep everyone safe.

"If you have a business, you need to have some sort of plan in place, like we did. A lot of people think it's corny, many think it's over-dramatic, but today it proves that it works."

A plan for the entire Provost Umphrey Law Firm while the point man in making sure it was carried out, talked, listened in this room and came out thirty minutes later.

"Nobody got hurt. That is the main thing. No one go hurt. This gentleman is on his way to get help, and so we've had a good day."

Graffagnino credits the quick response of Beaumont police and the way they handled the situation, with ensuring it ended peacefully.

Police sent the man for a psychiatric evaluation.