Peaceful Ending After Gunman Takes Hostages At California Shopping Center

[News_Editor]

Peaceful ending after gunman takes hostages at California shopping center < br />

2012-08-07 05:46:00 GMT+7 (ICT)

YUBA CITY, CALIFORNIA (BNO NEWS) -- A hostage situation at a sporting goods store in Northern California ended peacefully on Sunday afternoon after the human held employees hostage for several hours, police said. There were no injuries.

The situation began at about 11:15 a.m. local time on Sunday when a gunman entered the Big 5 Sporting Goods store in Yuba City in Sutter County, located about 40 miles (64 kilometers) north of Sacramento. The suspect walked up to a cashier and dragged her by her throat at gunpoint to a nearby office, where he attempted to gain entry.

The suspect then allegedly fired several rounds into the air and ordered everybody in the store to the back of the building, witnesses said. Two hostages remained in the sporting goods store while hostage negotiators tried to achieve a peaceful ending. A SWAT team also remained on standby at the scene.

Police said the situation was made more difficult because large groups of people had gathered in the parking lot.

But the situation came to a peaceful end at about 3 p.m. local time when the suspect, identified only as a 28-year-old man, surrendered and exited the store with his hands in the air before being taken into custody. It was not immediately known what was the motive for the hostage situation, or if the gunman made any demands.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2012-08-07