BROOKLYN — Authorities say a hostage crisis at the Brooklyn Public Library's central branch ended this afternoon after security forces killed three of the gunmen as they fled the scene while two off-duty police officers apprehended additional suspects inside the building.
The drama began some time after 3:00 pm when six armed men — believed to be part of a militant, anti-Evolved sect — shot dead two security guards at the front of the library. The suspects then separated those with registration cards and allowed the rest of their hostages to go free.
Police Commissioner Karen Lau said that authorities are looking for more accomplices following the arrest of the two gunmen that survived the ordeal. "Tension has run high in this area since Senator Petrelli's world famous announcement last February," she added. "The suspects haven't provided us with a motive for the shootings, but based on witness reports — I'm confident when I say we believe this to be a hate crime directed at Brooklyn's Evolved population."