Madison, GA (WLTX. WXIA, AP) - A hostage situation in Georgia that began with an Amber Alert in West Columbia has now ended.
Early word is that the victims were released and are okay. The suspect has also surrendered.
The hostage siutation started Sunday night and continued into Monday morning at a Red Roof Inn in Madison, Georgia. It's believed that the suspect, 25-year-old David Dietz, and the victims were barricaded in the hotel.
A man wearing body armor came out of the motel off Interstate 20 in Madison, Ga., around 9:30 this morning and put the infant into an ambulance. Moments later, the man thought to be the suspect was taken away.
S.W.A.T. teams from the the Morgan County, Georgia sheriff's office, the G.B.I., and G.S.P. were all involved. The F.B.I. also was involved in the negotiations.
Authorities say shots were fired at that location although no one was injured.
Dietz had been refusing to negotiate with police over the phone and was trading notes with authorities via a Georgia State Patrol robot.
Madison is just off Interstate 20 between Augusta and Atlanta.
An Amber Alert was issued early Sunday morning for seven-month-old Allim David Dietz, 29-year-old Eva Arce-Perez, and 17-year-old Jamie Lynn Burgess of West Columbia. That alert was canceled in our state when it was determined that Dietz was in Georgia.
Officers say the three victims were abducted by David Dietz, Allim's father and the estranged husband of Arce-Perez.
At the time of the abduction, which took place at 11:00 p.m. Saturday on North Lucas Street in West Columbia, David Dietz was wearing a black uniform with "police" on both sleeves and back. Chief Dennis Tyndall says that Dietz was hiding outside the home Arce-Perez and the child arrived.
Tyndall says the suspect fired shots from his car into another as he was driving off with the two victims.
It's not clear how Burgess is connected to the case, other than she may be being held against her will.
Columbia police say Dietz is a former employee with their agency. He was hired in June of 2006, but resigned without notice in October of that same year.
Police say he was certified and sworn in. There are no known instances of any disciplinary problems while he was with the force.
1/5/2009 4:44:59 PM
