STAFFORD — A standoff in this Ocean County township ended peacefully on Friday after snarling the weekend ride to LBI.

Stafford police shut down Route 72 in both directions after responding to reports of a suicidal 32-year-old man who barricaded himself inside a home in the Paramount Escapes 55-plus community west of the Garden State Parkway.

After three hours of negotiations, the man — whose identity has not been disclosed by police — surrendered and was taken to Southern Ocean Medical Center for a psychological evaluation. No charges have been filed.

Route 72, between West Bay Avenue in Barnegat and Neptune Drive in Stafford, was closed for about three hours. Drivers were detoured onto West Bay Ave and Route 9, which had heavy traffic because of an earlier accident on the Garden State Parkway.

The Ocean County SWAT team responded to the incident along with Stafford and Barnegat police and the Stafford fire police.

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