SWAT teams in Western Washington rescued four people Sunday after a 16-hour standoff between police and a man who barricaded himself in his sister’s home in Issaquah. The Seattle Times reports standoff ended in a house fire and the suspect is believed to have died in the flames. The hostages rescued were the sister, her boyfriend, and two young children. Police say the suspect was armed with a handgun and was the 28-year old brother of the woman whose home he forced his way into Saturday night. A King County sheriff’s SWAT team rescued the boyfriend and two children just before 1 AM Sunday but were unable to reach the sister, who was in a different part of the house. After negotiators were unsuccessful over the next 9-and-a-half hours in getting the brother to release his sister and to surrender, a second SWAT operation rescued the sister unharmed. Within minutes of her rescue, and after negotiators were unable to raise any response from the home, SWAT teams deployed gas into the house, though it’s not yet known what caused the fire. (AP)
