Hostage Taker hands self over to the police in Paris

PARIS – An armed man who earlier took several people hostage at post office northwest of Paris on Friday, has surrendered all by himself without hurting anyone. Reuters reported.

The man who was fully equipped with dangerous weapon, was said to have taken an unconfirmed number of hostages at the post office in the town of Columbes, just outside the capital.

“I cannot confirm or deny whether it is linked to terrorism,” an official at the city prosecutor’s office told Reuters earlier, declining to give further details.

BFM TV, citing an unidentified source, said the hostage drama was not related to last week’s attacks in Paris.

French police arrested 12 people earlier on Friday suspected of helping militant Islamist gunmen in last week’s killings in Paris. There have been numerous false alerts across the city since the attacks.

(Reporting by Chine labbe and Gerard Bon; writing by John Irish and Brian Love; editing by Mark John and Andrew Callus)

French police arrested 12 people earlier on Friday suspected of helping militant Islamist gunmen in last week’s killings in Paris. There have been numerous false alerts across the city since the attacks.