Worker doused with lighter fluid, held hostage in 7-11

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VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – A 7-11 worker in Vancouver has been put through a terrible ordeal.  A man with a knife walked into her store, doused her with lighter fluid, and threatened to set her on fire.  This happened at the store on Granville Street at the corner with Drake around 11:30 a.m.

“He then barricaded himself inside the store as police began to attend the area and contain it,” says Constable Brian Montague with the VPD.  “Negotiators and members of the Vancouver Police Emergency Response Team attended, and began speaking with the man.  He eventually released the female and then shortly after that surrendered himself to police.”

Montague says the woman has been taken to hospital as a precaution. She did suffer minor injuries during the hostage taking.  “It’s still early on in the investigation but there does appear to be a relationship between the two.  What that relationship is I’m not too sure right now.”

The incident lasted about an hour, forcing police to close Granville Street near the foot of the Granville Street bridge, forcing northbound traffic to take the Seymour exit. Traffic on Drake also was detoured, and even the alley behind the store was closed.

Police excercised an abundance of caution during negotiations, disabling security cameras inside the store.  “The members would have taken out surveillance cameras just in case the man inside was able to see police entering, or if there was others involved that could have seen police entering.”

“In any situation like this that happens quickly, we’re not sure how many people are involved,” he explains.  “In the utmost of caution, we will presume that there are others involved, or others in the store.”

A 37-year-old man has been taken into custody. Police haven’t announced what kind of charges they will be recommending and it’s not clear at this time if the man will be given a psychiatric assessment.

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