Man Takes 5 Hostages at Rural Virginia Post Office
Man Takes 5 Hostages at Rural Virginia Post Office! An armed man in a wheelchair took five hostages at a post office in western Virginia, forcing officials to cordon off three blocks of a downtown filled with holiday shoppers.
Shots were fired, but there were no reports of injuries. The man made no demands other than to ask for a pizza, said Pete Rendina, spokesman for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. State police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said authorities are negotiating with the suspect.
Virginia State Police sent in a SWAT team and a bomb technician. According to police on the scene, the man had five hostages and five pounds of common plastic explosive, strapped to his wheelchair. Officers on the scene were encouraging the man to contact a hostage negotiator through 911.
Carlton Austin said his daughter, postal worker Margie Austin, was among the hostages. She managed to call a family friend around 4:30 p.m. and said she was fine. Later, her father said, family members were waiting to hear more.
Niki Oliver told the Enterprise that her brother, Jimmy Oliver, was one of the hostages and had been able to phone family members.Niki Oliver said her brother went to the post office to mail a Christmas gift to his son.
At 4:30, the Wytheville Fire Department was readying for what could be a long night, getting a truck with lighting capability set up across from the post office, where the red truck with a camper top, it’s lights still on, sat in the drive through lane.
