Philippines Hostage-Taker Frees Dozens, Ends Standoff at Mall

A Philippine security guard, sacked from his job at a shopping mall in the capital, Manila, shot a man and took dozens of people hostage.

Members of a police SWAT team prepare to enter a mall after a hostage situation was reported in suburban Manila on March 2, 2020. Photo by Ted Aljibe/AFP/Getty Images

MANILA, Philippines—A recently dismissed security guard freed his hostages and walked out of a shopping mall in the Philippine capital on March 2, ending a daylong standoff in an upscale commercial district near the police and military headquarters, officials said.

The former guard at the commercial complex, identified by police as Archie Paray, left the V-Mall in suburban San Juan city in metropolitan Manila with his hostages, who were secured by police.