Bloomington Police confirm gunman killed during hostage situation

The hostage situation on Monday ended in suspect Richard W. North’s death due to injuries from police gunfire at John’s Food Mart on the corner of Rogers Street and Rockport Road. North was a 50-year-old Bloomington resident.

The Bloomington Police Department responded to a 911 call at 1:25 p.m. that “a male was holding a gun to the head of a female in the 1300 block of South Rogers Street,” according to a BPD press release.

Arriving on the scene, an officer saw that the male held one arm around the female’s neck and continued to walk down Rogers Street toward South Rockport Road. Initial reports say the male fired multiple shots, including at least one toward the responding officer before additional officers arrived to block off traffic from entering the area.

The male continued to hold onto the female and attempted to enter John’s Food Mart, which already had locked its doors at the instruction of officers in the area. A hostage negotiator communicated with him to put the weapon on the ground. Refusing to let go of his weapon, the male continued to wave it at the female, himself and toward BPD officers.

According to a BPD press release, members of the Critical Incident Response Team responded to the scene and took up positions around the incident’s perimeter. The male continued to refuse to release the weapon, and a police sniper fired a shot at the male.

The female was removed by other officers and has since been released from the Bloomington Police Department after being interviewed by investigators. The male was transported to IU Health-Bloomington, where he was pronounced dead from his injuries.

The incident remains under investigation by the Detective Division, and, due to the officer’s involvement in the shooting, an administrative internal investigation will be conducted as well.

— Bailey Loosemore