Local law enforcement were able to evacuate all the hostages who were held by a 26-year-old suspect in Trenton, N.J., on Saturday afternoon.
Matt Rourke/AP
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Local law enforcement were able to evacuate all the hostages who were held by a 26-year-old suspect in Trenton, N.J., on Saturday afternoon.
Matt Rourke/AP
Multiple law enforcement agencies are on the scene outside a house in north Trenton, N.J., where they believe the suspect responsible for killing three people in Falls Township, Pa., had been holding hostages.
The Trenton Police Department said all the residents inside the home were successfully evacuated with no injuries.
At least three people, including a 13-year-old girl, were killed in shootings in two sections of Falls Township on Saturday morning, law enforcement officials said. One woman, who was beaten by the shooter, has been sent to the hospital.
At a press conference on Saturday, Jennifer Schorn, the district attorney for Bucks County, Pa., described the suspect as a 26-year-old male named Andre Gordon who was homeless.
Falls Township Police Chief Nelson Whitney said Gordon used an Ar-15 style assault rifle, but it is unclear how the suspect obtained the weapon.
All the victims had familial ties to the suspect, officials say
Gordon broke into a house in Falls Township on Saturday morning and fatally shot his 52-year-old stepmother and 13-year-old sister. Three others, who were inside house, were able to hide themselves as Gordon went to search for them.
The suspect then drove to another house in Falls Township, where he forcibly broke in and fatally shot a 25-year-old woman — with whom he has two children. Gordon also attacked another woman inside the house with his assault rifle, Schorn added. She is currently being treated at a local hospital.
Gordon later fled to a nearby Dollar General store, where he stole a man’s car and traveled to Trenton, where he also has family ties.
Schorn said Gordon barricaded himself with hostages, who have since all been released.
A resident is evacuated from a home in Trenton, N.J. on Saturday.
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A resident is evacuated from a home in Trenton, N.J. on Saturday.
Matt Rourke/AP
On Saturday morning, Falls Township Police issued a shelter-in-place order and advised residents to “lock all doors and move to a central and secure location away from windows.” Authorities also asked travelers to avoid visiting the township for the time being.
As of 1 p.m. local time, the shelter-in-place had been lifted.
Falls Township is located near the Pennsylvania-New Jersey border near Trenton. It is also near Sesame Place, a Sesame Street-themed amusement park in Langhorne, Pa. Sesame Place announced it will be closed on Saturday.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
