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A bank robber in Florida was fatally shot by a SWAT sniper on Tuesday (February 6). The Lee County Sheriff's Office office said that deputies were called to a Bank of America in Fort Meyers just after 11 a.m. after receiving a report of a bank robbery with hostages.
Officers rushed inside the bank and encountered the suspect, 36-year-old Sterling Ramon Alavache, who was holding two hostages and claimed to have a bomb.
The officers tried to negotiate with Alavache, but he put one of the hostages in a chokehold and held a knife to her neck.
That's when a SWAT sniper fired a shot, killing Alavache.
"When he presented deadly force like that, our SWAT sniper shot and killed the suspect," Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said during a press conference. "We were in fear for her life and her safety."
The officer who fired the shot was placed on administrative leave pending an investigation into the shooting.
Alavache had a lengthy criminal history, including convictions on drug trafficking, aggravated assault, and firearms charges in several states.