On Monday, a rabbi who was among four Jewish worshipers kidnapped at a Dallas-area synagogue said he and others were able to flee after he hurled a chair at the hostage-taker and dashed for an exit door.
The ten-hour standoff at the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue in Colleyville, Texas, ended in a shooting Saturday, with all four hostages freed and the suspect killed. It’s unclear whether the gunman committed suicide or was murdered by FBI hostage rescue team members.
According to Rabbi Charlie Cytron Walker, who was among those kidnapped, the suspect, who was identified by the FBI as a British citizen, knocked on the synagogue’s door during Sabbath prayers and was invited in and offered tea.
Walker said he “heard a click – and it might have been anything – but it turns out it was his rifle” after returning to prayer.
After six hours of stressful discussions with the help of the suspect’s family, 44-year-old Malik Faisal Akram, one hostage was released unhurt.
Walker, who is still being held captive alongside two others, said he used FBI hostage training to decide whether or not to try to flee.
“When I saw an opening where he wasn’t in a favorable position,” Walker explained, “I made sure the two individuals who were still with me were ready to go, (and) the exit wasn’t too far away.”
“I told them to get out of here. I threw a chair at the gunman and ran for the door, and the three of us were able to escape without firing a shot.”
After afterward, the FBI’s hostage rescue squad raided the synagogue, killing Akram. Two teens have been seized by police in England for interrogation.
