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Hostage Drama: Police Shoot Suspect Gunman
12:17am UK, Thursday September 02, 2010
Kate Sullivan
A gunman holding hostages while thought to have explosives strapped to his body has been shot by police, officers have said.<object height="225" width="400">
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Witnesses told how the man entered the headquarters of the Discovery Channel in Maryland, US, shouting "nobody is going anywhere" and firing a shot. And police said the man, named locally as former Discovery Channel employee James Jay Lee, was wearing what appeared to be "metallic canister devices" when he entered the office block.
According to reports, Lee died after police shot him. The three people he held hostage are said to be safe. Negotiators spent hours speaking to the man by phone while he held the three hostages, one of whom was believed to have been a security guard. Lee believed to have held a grudge against the Discovery Channel in Silver Spring and was said to have been demanding to speak to the channel's bosses.
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We're told that there is a tactical plan in place, suggesting they are willing to take a shot at the man if necessary.
<cite> US correspondent Greg Milam
</cite> Mr Lee's brother-in-law Thomas Leonard told Fox News the family were shocked to hear their family member was a suspect. He described Lee as an environmental activist and artist who had served time in jail. The deaths of his mother and grandfather led Lee's "spirit to take a nosedive" and he became a "darker character", the brother-in-law said.
Lee had staged a demonstration against the Discovery Channel in the past which involved throwing thousands of dollars into the air, he added. Sky News' US correspondent Greg Milam said up to 40 police squad cars were at the scene as officers moved in and around the building evacuating staff.
"Swat teams, heavily armed and in protective gear, are receiving a briefing," Milam said at the time. "We're told that there is a tactical plan in place, suggesting they are willing to take a shot at the man if necessary... but for now they are hoping it will end peacefully."
Police have not confirmed whether anyone apart from the gunman was injured or whether the building, which contains a creche, had been fully evacuated. :: Discovery Communications said it reaches 1.5 billion subscribers in more than 180 countries with the Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Science Channel and Planet Green networks.
