4 held hostage in QC

MANILA (UPDATE) – At least 4 people have been taken hostage in Quezon City. The suspect, 22-year-old "Gerry", is currently taking hostage an 8-month-old girl and three others inside a house along Halcon Street in Barangay Sta. Teresita. The hostage-taking incident started at around 6:30 a.m. The suspect is armed with a knife. One of the trapped victims was allegedly wounded and has lost a huge amount of blood. Gerry's mother, 48-year-old Luzviminda Lo, was brought to the Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center after her son stabbed her in the chest. Chief Inspector Joseph De Vera, Quezon City Police District (QCPD) Station 1 deputy commander, was trying to reach Gerry through a megaphone, but the latter has yet to heed the calls to release the victims. "Iyung hostage-taker may hawak na bata, may nakatutok na patalim sa bata. Kinakausap namin. Pinilit kaming palabasin, kung hindi daw kami lalabas eh papatayin ang bata. Meron pa siyang tatlong kasama sa loob," a village chief surnamed del Barrio told dzMM. "Nasa gate kami ngayon, hindi siya nakikipag-usap ngayon." Authorities have yet to determine what exactly triggered the incident, but witnesses said the suspect, who is not a resident of the area, has been drunk since yesterday. The suspect was demanding to talk to a woman named "Jack," according to a barangay official privy to the ongoing negotiations. – reports from Dindo Amparo, Jerome Lantin and Jacque Manabat, ABS-CBN News; and Jon Ibañez, dzMM