State police in Luzerne County said a 20-year-old man is dead after taking a 15-year-old girl hostage on Sunday.
A news release said state police used “deadly force” against Jordan Patrick Oliver, who police said was holding the 15-year-old hostage in a wooded area near Warrior Run Borough in Luzerne County.
The girl was unharmed, state police said.
Police said the incident began around 3 p.m. Sunday when police in Nanticoke responded to a call of Oliver holding the girl at knifepoint at Nanticoke High School.
Nanticoke officers tried to negotiate with Oliver and the girl became free of him, according to state police.
State police said the girl was placed in a Nanticoke police cruiser as police tried to arrest Oliver. During a struggle, Oliver sprayed mace on the officers and fled with the marked cruiser and the girl, state police said.
Police, who had obtained a warrant to arrest Oliver on charges including kidnapping and aggravated assault, eventually found him in the wooded area, which was then surrounded by police from multiple departments and a state police special response unit, according to state police.
The news release included no further information about the manner of Oliver’s death.