Police in the Brazilian city of Curitiba have shot dead a man who held 13 children hostage in a kindergarten and threatened them with a knife and a liquid that smelled of gasoline. All the children have been freed, but reports of their condition are conflicting.
The incident took place at the CMEI São Braz municipal preschool education center in the San Bras neighborhood. According to police in the state of Paraná, the man jumped over a fence, entered a classroom and detained the children and kindergarten staff.
According to the Associated Press, he held the children for more than two hours. A liquid that smelled of gasoline was spilled in the room, and the man repeatedly threatened to set it on fire. Before the hostage situation began, the remaining children in the building were taken out unharmed.
The negotiations lasted about three hours. According to local police commander Alexandre López Diaz, law enforcement officers entered the classroom after the man began to show violence towards the children. His identity has not been released. Diaz said the man suffered from schizophrenia.
The Associated Press reported that none of the children were injured. However, Folha de S.Paulo reported that five children were taken for medical examination, one of whom had a facial injury. The discrepancy in information has not been publicly clarified.
The municipality of Curitiba has announced that the children and staff of the kindergarten will receive psychological support. Police have not said what the man's motive was.
Sources: rbc.ru, apnews.com, www1.folha.uol.com.br