INGLEWOOD, Calif., June 14 (UPI) -- Police in Inglewood, Calif., arrested three suspected robbers after a standoff Thursday inside a Burlington Coat Factory, officials said.
About half a dozen employees -- believed to be the cleaning crew -- were inside the building when three people wearing ski masks entered at about 7:10 a.m., demanding money, said Lt. Neal Cochran of the Inglewood Police Department.
A SWAT team and officers from Hawthorne Police Department also responded to the scene and were in negotiations with the suspected robbers by about 8:30 a.m., the Los Angeles Times reported.
The suspects told police they were ready to surrender but could not open the store's locked doors, KTLA-TV, Los Angeles, reported. Video from television helicopters showed a man kicking at the door before police broke a glass panel, allowing the hostages and suspects to leave.
Police handcuffed and questioned all 10 people as they left the building to determine who the suspects were. The incident was over by 9:30 a.m., Cochran said.
