There was a dicey incident at a California police station on Wednesday. As seen on video, a woman armed with a meat cleaver apparently took a hostage before being confronted by a group of cops, and tasered, said the Salinas Police Department. The suspect in this was identified as Mariel Capulong, 22.
Officers said this happened at about 4:10 p.m. Footage showed the victim at the front counter. She was identified as a 43-year-old woman conducting business. She began to head out of the lobby, but, according to cops, Capulong confronted her outside of the camera.
As seen on footage, a woman with a meat cleaver walks into frame, with the victim in an apparent headlock. Cops said that Capulong forced the woman into a chair off-camera, and the hostage situation continued.
Employees behind the counter told the suspect to drop the cleaver, police said. A whole bunch of officers confronted Capulong at gunpoint, but one of the officers pulled out a taser, and used it on the suspect.
BREAKING: Per Salinas PD a woman wielding a meat cleaver took another woman hostage in the lobby of the police station and is now in custody. Story up shortly at @salnews pic.twitter.com/y1zPsvhWTS
— Kate Cimini (@k_cimini) September 26, 2019
It’s unclear if Capulong has an attorney at this time. She is charged with kidnapping, false imprisonment, and assault with a deadly weapon. The defendant reportedly received minor injuries.
Officers said this incident happened over the course of a minute and 10 sections. There were a number of officers available to respond because this occurred near a shift change. The victim in the case was uninjured, cops said.
[Screengrab via Salinas Police Department]
