1 of 2 | Tsuneo Suzuki (R), the 86-year-old suspected gunman who has taken hostages and barricaded himself, is taken to a police station in Warabi City, Saitama Prefecture, Japan, on Tuesday. Photo by JiJi Press Japan/EPA-EFE
Oct. 31 (UPI) — Police in Japan arrested an alleged gunman and rescued a hostage from a post office as they investigated a shooting at a nearby hospital that hurt two people.
The suspect, identified by authorities as Tsuneo Suzuki, 86, was arrested after authorities rushed the post office to which he tried to escape. He allegedly initially took two women hostages but released one of them during his standoff that lasted several hours.
There were earlier reports of the sound of gunfire inside the post office while the suspect was inside but it was not clear why. It was not clear if post officer staffers and customers had a chance to leave before the police raid.
The man entered the post office with a handgun at around 2:15 p.m. local time in Toda City, near Tokyo, authorities said.
Police had earlier responded to a shooting near Toda Chuo General Hospital, where gunfire was reported at about 1 p.m. local time. Authorities said that while two people — a doctor, in his 40s, and a patient, in his 60s — were injured near the scene of the shooting, they could not confirm if those injuries, both non-life-threatening, were the result of the shooting.
The suspect in the shooting fled on a motorcycle.
Police were also investigating a fire at an apartment in Toda City, where they believe the suspected gunman lived. Investigators are trying to determine a link between the shooting and the fire.