Eleven hostages in Florida bank robbery freed, authorities say

Eleven hostages held at gunpoint by a robbery suspect in a north Florida credit union were freed two hours after their ordeal began Thursday, authorities said.

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office tweeted that “We have 11 hostages out” about two hours after the robbery of the Community First Credit Union started. The suspect was in custody, according to the sheriff’s office.

No hostages were shot, and early reports saying otherwise were not true, the sheriff’s office said.

An initial 911 call reporting a bank robbery came in at 9:06 a.m.

SWAT team members and police negotiators arrived at the scene a short time later, said Melissa Bujeda, a sheriff’s office spokeswoman.

Streets surrounding the bank were blocked by police, and Bujeda urged those unable to get to work during the ordeal to be patient.

“Situations like these sometimes can be short and sometimes can be long,” she said.

Bujeda also had urged local TV reporters not to show their positions around the credit union during the hostages’ ordeal because that could pose “a danger to officers as well as the individuals in the bank.”

The bank is located in a northwest Jacksonville commercial district.

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UPDATES:

9:02 a.m.: Updated with information that the hostages have been freed and the suspect is in custody.

This story was originally posted at 7:40 a.m.