Story highlights
NEW: One of the two hostages has died, Louisiana State Police say
Police identify the dead hostage-taker as Fuaed Abdo Ahmed
Ahmed shot both hostages as police stormed the building they were in
One hostage was freed earlier in the evening
(CNN) – The hostage standoff in St. Joseph, Louisiana, has ended with the hostage-taker and one hostage dead, police said.
Louisiana State Police shot and killed Fuaed Abdo Ahmed as they stormed the Tensas State Bank, just before midnight local time, according to Col. Michael Edmonson. He said the gunman had threatened to kill the hostages.
The two hostages – a man and a woman – were both shot by Ahmed as the police SWAT team entered the bank, Edmonson said.
One of the hostages later died, and the condition of the second former hostage remains critical.
Police said Ahmed was known to police, and Edmonson described him as a paranoid schizophrenic. Ahmed told hostage negotiators that he heard voices and wanted to have a device removed from his head.
Edmonson said authorities believe Ahmed planned the events at the bank. They found a book on hostage negotiations at the bank after he was killed.
Earlier in the evening, one bank employee was freed, while two of her colleagues remained held at gunpoint.
Born in California, the hostage-taker moved with his family to northeastern Louisiana, where his family owns a convenience store, Edmonson said. The Mississippi River community of St. Joseph – which is located about 35 miles south of Tallulah, Louisiana, and 35 miles north of Natchez, Mississippi – is the parish seat of Tensas Parish, which has about 5,000 people.
The Mississippi River community of St. Joseph is about 35 miles south of Tallulah, Louisiana, and 35 miles north of Natchez, Mississippi. It is the seat of Tensas Parish, which has about 5,000 people.
The incident began around 12:30 p.m., when the 20-year-old man entered the bank branch in St. Joseph with a handgun, taking the three bank employees hostage, according to officials.
After word got out about the hostage situation, local, state and federal law enforcement agents descended on the quiet community.
Law enforcement agents have been able to talk to the hostages. They also spoke with the gunman, who Edmonson said “has made some demands of us.” He did not elaborate.
Edmonson said he talked to, and prayed with, relatives of the hostages and that some of the suspect’s relatives have tried to approach the area.
In 2012: Gunman wounded, ending French hostage incident
CNN’s Alina Machado, Greg Botelho and Joe Sutton contributed to this report.