June 12 (UPI) -- A dangerous inmate with a history of hostage taking held a supervisor and trainee against their will at a French prison, authorities said Wednesday.
The prisoner was identified as Francis Dorffer, who police said has taken hostages five separate times during his incarceration at Conde-sur-Sarthe prison, about 100 miles southwest of Paris. The standoff occurred Tuesday evening, officials said.
Officials said the guards held hostage were a man and a woman, and police evacuated the surrounding area. Heavily armed police officers from the SWAT-type RAID tactical unit and French soldiers responded to the hostage situation at Conde-sur-Sarthe prison, which is designed for troubled inmates who have had discipline problems.
French authorities said Dorffer, 35, wanted to be transferred to a prison closer to his family.
Police said the guards were ultimately released.
Dorffer's sentence has also been extended multiple times for rape, robbery with violence and the murder of another prisoner.
The same prison saw a similar incident in March when an inmate and his girlfriend attacked guards with a knife. Elite police forces responded, killing the woman and injuring the prisoner.
