Laid-Off Worker Holds Hostage For Six Hours

A man upset over being laid off last year returned to his former workplace Tuesday, shot a supervisor and held a former co-worker hostage on live television before he was fatally shot by police.

Police held their fire for six hours because the gunman, John Miranda, had a shotgun taped to his hand and to the head of the hostage, Tom McNeil.

The hostage crisis ended after Miranda told police he would shoot McNeil at the end of a 60-second countdown. When the count had reached 15, McNeil grabbed the barrel of the shotgun and pushed it away, Police Chief Michael Nakamura said.

Miranda fired the shotgun twice, missing McNeil, and police opened fire on the gunman, striking him several times, the chief said.

Miranda, 28, was taken to a hospital with a chest wound, and he later died. The supervisor was reported in guarded condition, while McNeil, 30, had just a few abrasions.

The crisis began shortly after 8 a.m. at Seal Master of Hawaii, a water-proofing business.

The standoff continued for six hours, as Miranda talked by phone with police and disc jockeys at two Honolulu radio stations. He said he had been “stressed out” since being laid off and admitted he had “lost it.”

“It’s gonna end with a gun bang,” Miranda told radio station KIKI-FM.

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