Baltimore Fugitive Takes Burger King Customers Hostage

Sunday morning an armed suspect fleeing police reportedly ran into a Baltimore Burger King restaurant and initiated an hours-long standoff with police, but now police say the hostages have been freed unharmed.

According to WBALTV, a police officer recognized the man as a rape suspect and tried to stop him in the early afternoon on Sunday. The suspect realized what was happening and ran, eventually taking shelter in a Burger King restaurant.

It was 11 a.m. on a Sunday, and luckily the restaurant was not very crowded. There were four people inside, including a 67-year-old man, a 7-year-old girl, and two young women who worked at the restaurant, one manager and one staff member.

The hostage situation went on for approximately six hours, while the Baltimore SWAT officers and negotiators worked in rotations because of the extreme heat. By around 5 p.m., the suspect released the last two hostages and surrendered to police.

It was a long and very dangerous and scary situation, but fortunately in the end none of the hostages were harmed. The suspect was taken into custody as soon as he surrendered.