Masked Kidnappers Escape After 17-Hour Standoff

Four masked kidnappers broke through a police ring Friday, in a dramatic gun-brandishing end to a 17-hour standoff in this central Mexican town.

The kidnappers escaped after releasing their four hostages. No one was hurt.

More than 300 police officers cordoned off an area of the town Thursday night and surrounded the kidnappers, who were barricaded in a house and demanded a ransom. Three helicopters helped lay siege to the building.

But the kidnappers sprayed automatic-weapons fire from the house and threatened to kill the hostages if police moved in. After hours of negotiations, police provided the kidnappers with an escape vehicle in exchange for the hostages.

The kidnappers released two hostages, drove through the police lines - pointing guns out the vehicle’s windows - and released the other two hostages on a rural road. Then they escaped.

The bandits were demanding a ransom of $1,500. It was unclear whether the ransom was paid.