Police confirm that the gunman has been shot by Special Forces and is dead. Authorities fired on the hostage-taker as he attempted to blow himself up, head of Moscow Police press service Sofia Khotyna told RIA Novosti. Police sources also reveal that his claims of having explosives was a hoax after a dog team failed to uncover anything.
"At first the room was inspected by a canine team, which did not reveal the presence of explosives. Then explosives experts examined the object [the gunman claimed to be a bomb] and revealed it to be a fake," sources revealed.
A source confirms that the incident resulted in zero casualties among police and hostages.
The Interior Ministry reported earlier that all hostages had been released, but that the gunman remained inside and false claimed that the building is rigged with explosives. He demanded a large ransom of 4.7 million rubles and 13,000 euroes in exchange for not blowing up the building.
A bomb squad is on the scene.
A cashier had also barricaded herself inside the bank, hiding in a safe room.
"At 20:37 a call came in, that an unknown person in a mask with a pistol broke into the bank and threatened staff, not letting them out of the room," the Moscow police said in a press statement. "Police cordoned off the area and took action to free the hostages. At the moment, five people are already out of the room. Up to three people may still be inside."
"An unknown person with a weapon seized the bank branch and locked himself inside," a source told RIA Novosti. "His demands are not yet clear. Police special forces are on the scene.
Police negotiators worked on the scene and were in talks for over an hour. SWAT teams surrounded the area.
