An armed robber and his last two hostages walked out of a bank near Houston Friday after a standoff of nearly 5 hours with police, authorities said.
The peaceful resolution came about 2 hours after five hostages were released, and about 4 1/2 hours after the incident began at 11:30 a.m. CST with a botched attempt to rob a Chase Bank branch in Pearland, Texas, police said.
About 60 police officers, FBI agents and a SWAT team surrounded the bank, KHOU-TV, Houston, reported.
The Houston Chronicle said the assistant bank manger was assaulted and injured by one of two robbers and was among the people released one-by-one hours after multiple shots were fired before the standoff began. There was no word on his condition.
KHOU said one suspect had been taken into custody in handcuffs.
A witness called 911 to report seeing two men wearing ski masks enter the bank, the Chronicle said. Police had already responded to the scene when the two would-be robbers tried to leave the building and shots were fired, the newspaper said.
Police quickly took one of the two into custody but the second remained inside with at least seven hostages. Five were released just after 2 p.m. and the remaining two walked out of the bank with the second gunman at about 4 p.m.