Man with knife holds three-year-old hostage for eight hours hostage, knife, eight, hours, Man

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Man with knife holds three-year-old hostage for eight hours
Boy has gash to cheek, but will be fine.
Lara Fominoff/Tamara Slobogean Nov 24, 2010 06:08:52 AM
5 Comment(s)  45 Recommendation(s) VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - There was a dramatic take-down by Vancouver Police this morning after a man grabbed a three-year-old boy and held him in a bathroom at the Ray-Cam Community Centre in East Vancouver.


The 24-year-old man got into a heated argument with staff around 6 o'clock last night at the centre, before taking the child from his horrified mother. The boy was held in a bathroom until 2 a.m.


Vancouver Police Constable Lindsey Houghton says, "Right at the very end, when the man's mental state began to deteriorate, he did hold the boy. That's when he cut him... That's when our officers immediately had to burst in to rescue this boy from possible further injury."


Houghton knows getting over this will be a challenge for the family, and it's a case he'll never forget. "This is unbelievably traumatic. These events are fortunately very rare in our city. I can't remember something like this happening in my 13 years as a police officer... I hope to never see this again."

The three-year-old was rushed to hospital. He will need stitches for a three inch gash on his cheek. The suspect, who has a history with the law, was also taken to hospital with a cut to his head.

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