SAO PAULO: Brazilian police killed a man Friday after he held 13 children at knifepoint for more than two hours at a school in the southern city of Curitiba, authorities said. None of the children were injured.
Parana state police spokesperson Leticia Martins told journalists outside school CMEI Sao Braz that the man jumped one of the walls, broke into a classroom and kept children and staffers as hostages.
She did not disclose how the suspect was killed or the ages of the children involved.
“(The suspect) also threatened to pour gasoline onto himself and others, our negotiating teams were in place, but saw no alternative but to neutralize him,” said Martins, who did not say whether the suspect had expressed a specific reason for his actions.
The suspect poured a liquid that smelled like gasoline in the classroom and repeatedly threatened to light it. Other students left the school unharmed before the kidnapping began, Martins said.
The incident took place in the middle class region of Sao Braz in Curitiba, a city of 1.8 million residents located 400 kilometers (248 miles) south of metropolis Sao Paulo.
Local police commander Alexandre Lopes Dias told journalists the suspect was identified as a man who suffered from schizophrenia, but did not reveal the man's identity or how he was killed.
“We entered the classroom using a very tactical approach, with little risk for the children,” Dias added.
Local media showed footage of tearful parents outside the school waiting for information as the negotiations between the suspect and police were ongoing. Minutes after two explosions, officers emerged carrying some of the children outside.
Curitiba City Hall said in a statement that the children and school staffers will receive psychological support.
