Hostage Situation Ends with Shooting and Killing of Suspect;
Abducted Boy is Safe

ALEXANDRIA (APRIL 27, 2005) -- A domestic-related hostage situation ended this afternoon when Alexandria police shot and killed the suspect as he pointed a gun at police.

At 4:30 p.m., the suspect, 48-year-old Lewis W. Barber of Alexandria, exited his home in the unit block of West Wyatt Avenue where he had been holding his 9-year-old son hostage for nearly 20 hours. Barber came out on his porch, brandished a handgun and pointed it at police. At least one officer fired his weapon and the suspect fell.

Officers immediately entered the home and located the boy, unharmed, inside. Barber was taken to Inova Alexandria Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 5:15 p.m.

The night before, Barber abducted his son at gunpoint in the 1300 block of King Street in the presence of the boy’s mother, the suspect’s estranged wife. Barber took the boy to his home on West Wyatt Avenue and held him hostage overnight and throughout today.

Police are conducting both internal and criminal investigations into the shooting.

Neighbors who had been evacuated are being allowed to return to their homes as roads are reopened.