Lauderhill Robbery Suspect Who Took Elderly Couple Hostage Arrested After Long Standoff
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TAMARAC (CBSMiami) – A quiet neighborhood was shaken Friday afternoon when a man got into a home and held a couple hostage.
SWAT was called out to the retirement community in Tamarac. With their guns drawn, they approached the house where a man had barricaded himself inside.
"He had a big knife. He had a gun," said neighbor William Brennan.
Brennan, who was in the process of moving, heard his neighbor screaming and called 911.
"The neighbor came out screaming, 'Help me, help me, help me!' The guy came out and was choking and dragging her in, saying, 'Hey, it's okay,'" Brennan recalled.
But he knew it wasn't.
He was able to get the woman away – she was visibly shaken. But her elderly husband, in his 90's and unable to walk on his own, was still in the home being held hostage.
"I heard him while I was calling 911, yelling, 'Help, help, help,'" Brennan said.
At this time, it's unclear how the resident got away from the hostage taker and out of the house, but Chopper4 captured video of the elderly man being carried by deputies and put on a stretcher.
BSO said the suspect may have hit him with a gun. He was taken to the hospital.
Several hours and a flash bang later, the suspect surrendered. Neighbors recorded him being cuffed.
According to the Broward County Sheriff's Department, the suspect's motive was robbery.
