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Pittsburgh Hostage Standoff: Armed man holds one hostage in downtown office building, police say
Police block off the area around Three Gateway Center, building left rear, where they are negotiating with a man who claims to have a bomb, in downtown Pittsburgh Friday, Sept. 21, 2012.
/ AP Photo/Gene J. PuskarPolice negotiators were in contact with the man after he took the hostage shortly after 8 a.m. on the 16th floor of Three Gateway Center, Pittsburgh Police Chief Nate Harper said.
Authorities know the identities of the gunman and the hostage but were not releasing them, Harper said. He described the suspect as "ex-military," but didn't elaborate. He said no injuries had been reported and no shots had been fired.
A witness who works on the 16th floor identified the business where the hostage situation was unfolding as CW Breitsman Associates, a firm that helps businesses run employee benefits programs.
According to initial reports, the person being held hostage may be the owner or the manager, CBS Pittsburgh reports.
According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, emergency dispatchers said the suspect also claimed to have a bomb.
Harper says no shots have been fired and no injuries are reported.
Several hundred people milled around about a half-block from the 24-story building after police evacuated it.
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