Hostage Situation at Hillary Clinton’s Campaign Office
Written by OddCulture on November 30th, 2007 in Frisky Friday, TV, crime, culture.
An armed man has taken two campaign workers hostage at the Hillary Clinton campaign office in Rochester, police said. Officials with the campaign confirmed that there were two workers taken hostage in the office on 28 North Main St.. A woman and her baby told workers at a neighboring business that she was released by the hostage-taker.
“A young woman with a 6-month or 8-month-old infant came rushing into the store just in tears, and she said, ‘You need to call 911. A man has just walked into the Clinton office, opened his coat and showed us a bomb strapped to his chest with duct tape,’” witness Lettie Tzizik said.
Witnesses described the man as in his 40s with salt-and-pepper hair. Nearby businesses have been evacuated, and the St. Elizabeth Seton School has been locked down.
“There are sharp shooters on the roof, and police are negotiating with someone in the building,” said another witness, who did not want to be identified. “The police are notifying all the business owners on the street to evacuate. There are fire trucks behind the Hillary Clinton office.”
WNBC-TV in New York quoted an unidentified law enforcement source as saying the man wanted to speak with Clinton.
Clinton, who is not in New Hampshire, was attending a National Democratic Committee meeting in Virginia. DNC Chairman Howard Dean just announced Sen. Hillary Clinton won’t speak because of the hostage crisis.
Update:
Two hostages were released at about 3 p.m. ABC News reported that the hostage-taker was an older male who was well-known locally and has a history of mental illness who told his son today to “watch the new.”
Update:
Hostage Situation In Rochester Appears To Be Over
A man was taken into custody after he kneeled on the ground outside the office and police placed handcuffs on him. Moments earlier, a young man believed to be the third and final hostage was released.
A friend of the family said that the man thought that there was a government conspiracy and that government officials were “coming after him.”
