November 30, 2007
Two Hostages Released in NH
Per the Concord Monitor:
Hostages released at Clinton campaign office
From staff and wire reports
Two hostages have been released from the Hillary Clinton campaign office in Rochester, the police said, but it was unclear if there were any more inside. An armed man took hostages at the office on 28 North Main St. today at about 1p.m.
Officials with the campaign said that there were two workers taken hostage in the office, but the police have not confirmed that those were the only two hostages in the building.
The two hostages were released at about 3 p.m.
The man had what appeared to be a bomb strapped to himself, said Bill Shaheen, a top state campaign official. He took two hostages, both volunteers, and released others, Shaheen said.
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 news."
He reportedly demanded to speak to Clinton. She was not in New Hampshire today and had been scheduled to address a Democratic National Committee meeting in Vienna, Va.
Witness Lettie Tzizik told television station WMUR that she spoke to a woman shortly after she was released from the office by the suspect. The woman was carrying an infant, and crying.
“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,” Tzizik said.
Authorities sent a tactical bomb unit to assist local police, and the area was evacuated, said Maj. Michael Hambrook of the state police. A nearby school also was in lockdown.
The Clinton office is in the downtown area in a strip of several storefronts.
Posted at 05:09 PM
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