Suspect Shot And Killed During High-Rise Hostage Rescue

LOS ANGELES, CA — Los Angeles Police officer shot and killed a man who took a woman hostage in a downtown Los Angeles high-rise apartment and were able to rescue her.

"Based on the already incredibly violent actions and fearing the suspect was going to kill the hostage, SWAT entered the apartment," LAPD officials tweeted late Friday. An officer shot the suspect, who was "struck by gunfire and ... died at scene."

The name of the suspect will be released pending notification of next of kin, according to the coroner's office.

The woman was taken to a hospital in unknown condition.

LAPD Detective Meghan Aguilar told reporters that prior to the hostage situation, the suspect shot randomly at a group of people during what might have been a robbery and wounded a 14-year-old boy, who was grazed in the arm by a bullet.

Aguilar said the boy was taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

He also accosted a woman on the street, put a gun to her head and pulled the trigger, Aguilar said.

"Luckily, the gun did not go off," Aguilar said.

Police responded at about 4:10 p.m. Friday to the apartment in the 500 block of South Main Street on reports of a shooting, police said.

The suspect barricaded himself and the hostage inside the apartment and SWAT officers were called to the scene.

Video taken by a Twitter user who was in a building near the high-rise showed the man holding a gun to the hostage's head and dragging her to different areas of the apartment before several police officers equipped with tactical gear entered the room. Several gunshots are heard before the video ends.

—City News Service