A man is facing attempted robbery and false imprisonment charges after he tried to rob a Sun Valley gas station and held a store employee hostage Wednesday, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
The attempted robbery was reported at 3:49 p.m. near the intersection of Roscoe Boulevard and Webb Avenue, according to Officer Cervantes of the LAPD.
During the robbery, an employee of the gas station was taken hostage, added Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton
After “hours of trying to get the suspect to come out and surrender,” police “determined there was a safety issue” with the store employee, and Los Angeles Fire Department personnel helped the hostage escape by cutting a hole in a plexiglass window, Hamilton said.
The removal of the hostage allowed police to “further negotiations with the suspect,” Hamilton said, and police were able to detain the man about three and a half hours after the ordeal began.
“He surrendered peacefully, and he was taken into custody without incident,” Hamilton added.
The suspect, whose name and age have not yet been released, will face two felony charges for the incident, one for the robbery attempt and another for holding the gas station employee against their will, Hamilton said.
