Local News in Brief : Hostage, 76, Slain in Robbery Attempt
An elderly man was shot to death in South-Central Los Angeles after being held hostage for nearly five hours by suspected robbers, including a teen-age girl who was later booked on suspicion of murder, police said Thursday.
A SWAT team, which stormed the man’s home at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday found Anthony Earl, 76, dead from a gunshot wound, Detective Gil Frees said.
Joseph Smith, 30, who had allegedly held the elderly man hostage for nearly five hours, was found hiding in the basement, police said. He was arrested on suspicion of murder, as was the 17-year-old girl.
“The robbery apparently went bad, leading to the hostage situation,” Frees said.
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