Five dead, including hostage-taker, in Germany: police

KARLSRUHE, Germany - Agence France-Presse

Policemen stand in the area where a gunman had taken several people, including a bailiff, hostage during a home eviction in Karlsruhe, southwestern Germany, on July 4, 2012. AFP Photo

Five people were killed after a gunman took people hostage during a home eviction in southwestern Germany Wednesday, police said.
 
A police spokesman said the hostage-taker and all his hostages were dead after he barricaded himself and them into an apartment block in the city of Karlsruhe.

Police stormed the flat after smelling something burning and found the bodies inside, they said.
 
Residents of the building had raised the alarm with police at around 9:00 am when shots were heard from the home of the hostage-taker who was due to be evicted in the morning.
 
Police earlier said they presumed the three to four people being held hostage were a bailiff, the new home owner, the caretaker and a locksmith.
 
Specially trained police were at the scene which had been sealed off.