September 13, 200619 yr http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/custom/...story?track=rss By Jeremy Gorner Tribune staff reporter Published September 13, 2006, 12:49 PM CDT Authorities were responding to a hostage situation this morning at a bank in south suburban Dolton, prompting police to close every street within about a mile, authorities said. One gunman was believed to be holding "at least two or three possible hostages" inside the Heritage Community Bank, located at Sibley Boulevard and Chicago Road, said Sean Howard, a Dolton spokesman. The botched robbery began sometime before 11 a.m. "There were individuals that were able to leave during the inception of the robbery attempt itself," Howard told WGN-Ch. 9. Police have cordoned off streets within a six- to seven-block radius of the bank, according to Howard. He urged the public not to travel in that vicinity. Jorge Hernandez, 21, an employee at Pepe's Tacos, a restaurant located near the bank, said two bank employees entered the restaurant around 11 a.m. after being instructed to leave the building by their manager. They described to Hernandez a gunman who had a handkerchief over his face, and they said the gunman was in the bank vault with at least two hostages, Hernandez said. ``They were scared more than upset,'' Hernandez said in a phone interview with the Associated Press. ``They were scared for their co-workers.'' Hernandez said he and other employees were locked inside the restaurant on the instructions of police, who also told him to stay away from the windows and hang up the phone. The two bank employees had previously been escorted out by police, Hernandez said. Bennie Wright, 40, said from a nearby Domino's Pizza that he could see police from Dolton and the surrounding towns of South Holland and Riverdale surrounding the bank, some holding weapons. He said the scene was calm as police grouped together near a van. ``They've got it well maintained,'' Wright said. ``It looks like they're mapping out a strategy right now.'' The FBI, the South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force and police from neighboring towns are assisting Dolton police, Howard said. Police will discuss the holdup during a media briefing at 14844 Chicago Road at 1 p.m. no one gets hurt.
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