Cops kill man who threatened to throw out toddler from 4th floor

The man who took the girl hostage at Taman Telipok Ria in Tuaran, near Kota Kinabalu. He was shot dead by the police.

KOTA KINABALU: A hostage drama involving a two-year-old girl that lasted almost six hours ended after police shot dead her captor at Taman Telipok Ria in Tuaran, near here, today.

The man, in his 30s, had taken the girl captive at knifepoint after entering a sundry shop on the fourth floor and whisked her to another unit on the same floor at about noon.

It was learned that police shot the man at 5.35pm after he refused to set the girl free despite being persuaded by them in the long standoff.

Sabah police chief Omar Mammah said the man had tried to throw the girl out from the fourth floor unit.

Several shots were heard after the situation became tense with a large crowd that had built up turning almost chaotic.

Soon after the shooting, the girl was taken away in an ambulance.

She was reported to have sustained cut wounds but was otherwise in good health.

Omar said the man, who was believed to be mentally ill, did not not possess any identification document.

He said police had persuaded him to surrender but he refused.

“The man tried to throw the girl out from the fourth floor. That was when the police fired the shots,” he said.

He said police had yet to establish the motive behind the hostage taking, adding that man did not make any demands when police spoke to him. -FMT