Armed Prisoner on the Run after Escaping from D.C.-Area Hospital


Armed Prisoner on the Run after Escaping from D.C.-Area Hospital

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An armed prisoner was on the run early on Tuesday after escaping from a hospital in northern Virginia where shots were fired, police and CBS News said.

The prisoner, identified as Wossen Assaye by the Fairfax County Police Department, broke free from a private security guard at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, Virginia, and fled with the guard's weapon, the department said on its Twitter account.

It was not clear who opened fire or whether anyone was injured, police spokeswoman Ellen Pittman told CBS, Reuters reported.

Roads around the hospital were shut down as authorities from several different agencies searched for the suspect, who was dressed only in a hospital gown, police said. The hospital was also locked down, police said.

Footage posted online by local broadcaster WJLA showed a heavy police presence outside the hospital, with several squad cars on surrounding streets.

Representatives of the hospital, which is situated about 15 miles (24 km) west of Washington D.C., could not immediately be reached for comment.

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