Five People Killed in German Hostage Drama - East Idaho News
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Five People Killed in German Hostage Drama

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GETTY W 070512 GermanyMap?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1341481475202iStockphoto/Thinkstock(BERLIN) — Five people were shot dead Wednesday during a hostage standoff involving an apartment eviction in the German city of Karlsruhe, police said.  The dead include the 53-year-old suspected gunman.

Authorities say the drama began at an apartment complex when a locksmith, a bailiff and a person planning to move into an apartment were taken hostage by a man who was scheduled to be evicted.

Police say the man barricaded himself and his hostages inside a two-bedroom apartment with a large number of weapons, including what one witness said was a live hand grenade. 

An elite police unit finally stormed the apartment nearly three hours after the first shots were heard, and discovered four bodies, including the deceased gunman.  The fifth victim, the gunman’s partner, died of her wounds later at a hospital.

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