(DailyVantage.com) – Florida authorities have released surveillance footage of an incident where a police sniper shot an armed bank robber who had hostages through a computer monitor, a highly challenging shot that police claim was carefully orchestrated and performed.
The incident occurred at a Bank of America in Fort Myers, Florida, when a suspect entered the bank and took several hostages. The bank robber told the bank’s staff and first responders that he had a bomb strapped to his body and that he’d kill the people inside the bank if the police didn’t do as he asked.
Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno addressed the incident in a public statement and told Florida residents that the police attempted to negotiate with the bank robber, whom police have identified as Sterling Alavache, on multiple occasions. Despite authorities’ attempts to talk with Alavache, the suspect continued to hold hostages and even had a knife to one of the bank’s customer’s throats. Once Alavache indicated that he would kill the customer, police opted for lethal force and allowed a sniper to open fire at Alavache.
Once Alavache stopped communicating with first responders, police began planning a breach and clear routine to follow after the sniper shot him. The sniper, who operated as part of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office’s Special Operations team, managed to gain a clear line of sight on Alavache following a tense standoff. The sniper’s line of sight had a monitor in between the rifle and Alavache, but the authorities granted permission to take the shot regardless of the obstacle. The sniper opened fire and shot through the monitor at Alavache, hitting him in the head and killing him almost instantaneously.
Surveillance footage captured the tense standoff between Alavache and police, including the moment when the sniper opened fire and killed him. In the footage, viewers can see Alavache backed into a corner with a hostage at knife-point while screaming at police. The footage also captured the moment when the sniper shot through the bank monitor, which began malfunctioning after the bullet passed through its screen. The footage also captured the moments after the fatal shooting, when police stormed the bank and rescued the hostages held by Alavache during the tense standoff.
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