Newark

SWAT Team Shoots, Kills Man Who Held Woman Hostage for 7 Hours: Police

“It’s an unfortunate outcome, but the officers did an outstanding job in rescuing and saving the life of the victim, who has an 11-year-old child,” Newark's Public Safety Director said

What to Know

  • A SWAT team shot and killed a man who held a woman hostage at gunpoint for nearly seven hours in New Jersey, authorities said
  • Neighbors said the man and women were an on-again off-again couple
  • The woman wasn’t hurt during the standoff

A SWAT team shot and killed a man who held a woman hostage at gunpoint for nearly seven hours in New Jersey, authorities said.

Police responding to a domestic violence call around 9:50 p.m. on Friday found a man holding a woman he knew at gunpoint in the vicinity of Broadway and Irving Street in Newark, the Newark Department of Public Safety said.

The Newark Police SWAT team and Emergency Services Unit negotiated with the man for nearly seven hours before they ultimately shot and killed him, the department said.

The man was using the woman “as a shield,” according to the department.

“NPD SWAT continued negotiating with the suspect during the seven-hour incident and used less lethal options before using deadly force and shooting the suspect,” Newark Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said in a statement.

“It’s an unfortunate outcome, but the officers did an outstanding job in rescuing and saving the life of the victim, who has an 11-year-old child,” he added.

The woman wasn’t hurt during the standoff, the department said.

Neighbors told News 4 the man and women were an on-again off-again couple.

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