Manila: Philippine police say gunmen who took six people hostage in a bank near the Philippine capital have surrendered after releasing their hostages unharmed.
Police say the four gunmen took the people hostage around noon Thursday after botching a robbery at the bank in Bacoor township in Cavite province.
Mayor Strike Revilla says the gunmen gave up several hours later after they were assured of their safety.
Provincial police chief John Bulalacao says there were only six hostages, not eight as he had initially reported.
The crisis came while the bloody ending of a hostage-taking last year was still fresh in the public mind. In that case, a dismissed policeman killed eight Hong Kong tourists on a bus before he was fatally shot by police snipers.
Bureau Report
First Published: Thursday, October 13, 2011, 12:40