Moment mother holds up crucifix to teeth-baring attacker with ice pick who had taken son, nine, hostage
By KERRY MCDERMOTT
PUBLISHED: 08:54 GMT, 24 July 2012 | UPDATED: 09:50 GMT, 24 July 2012
Desperate: The woman, believed to be the young hostage's mother, can be seen holding a crucifix up to the man holding an ice pick to her son's throat as she begs for his release
Teeth bared and wild-eyed, this crazed attacker holds an ice pick to his young hostage's throat in an eight-hour ordeal which looked as if it could only end in tragedy.
But despite the terrible danger to the nine-year-old child's life, one brave woman remained astonishingly calm.
In a moment which could have come straight from a vampire movie, the woman - believed to be the boy's mother - confronted Reimer Parparan with a crucifix in Quezon City in the Philippines.
She was eventually able to step in and grab his arms, allowing police to tackle him and release the boy, identified as Mark Jason Pineda.
Mark was taken to hospital with two small nicks on his neck where the ice pick had been held against his skin. He was otherwise unharmed.
Parparan had reportedly walked to the district of Barangay Kristong Hari in Quezon City from Cavite, more than 13 miles away, before suddenly taking the child hostage at around 11pm on Friday night.
The crisis was resolved in the early hours of Saturday morning. There are some conflicting reports about how the hostage-taking ended with local news outlets saying the boy's mother saw her chance to step in when Parparan briefly dropped the ice pick.
However, police claim that negotiators talked him down.
He was arrested and is now facing charges of serious illegal detention, according to Quezon City Police District Chief Superintendent Mario O Dela Vega.
Chief Supt Dela Vega said in a statement on the force's website: 'The hostage negotiator opted to wait and put on hold any tactical manoeuvre and decided to wear down the suspect who appeared to be suffering from a mental breakdown and has no clear demands for his brash actions.
'The method employed by police finally paid off when it compelled the troubled suspect to ask for drinking water providing for an avenue for police to negotiate and bargain with him that eventually ended the stalemate around 7.30am in the morning with the release of the hostage.'
Threat: Parparan appears to tighten his grip on the young boy as the woman moves closer
Brave: Local news reports claim the woman pictured, understood to be the mother of the young hostage, seized an opportunity to restrain Parparan when he set down his ice pick
Negotiations: A woman reported to be the captured boy's mother is seen alongside police negotiators attempting to defuse the situation in Barangay Kristong Hari
'Breakdown': The 24-year-old hostage-taker, identified as Reimer Parparan, appears distressed as he holds an ice pick to the neck of nine-year-old Mark Jason Pineda in Quezon City in the Philippines
PUBLISHED: 08:54 GMT, 24 July 2012 | UPDATED: 09:50 GMT, 24 July 2012
Desperate: The woman, believed to be the young hostage's mother, can be seen holding a crucifix up to the man holding an ice pick to her son's throat as she begs for his release
Teeth bared and wild-eyed, this crazed attacker holds an ice pick to his young hostage's throat in an eight-hour ordeal which looked as if it could only end in tragedy.
But despite the terrible danger to the nine-year-old child's life, one brave woman remained astonishingly calm.
In a moment which could have come straight from a vampire movie, the woman - believed to be the boy's mother - confronted Reimer Parparan with a crucifix in Quezon City in the Philippines.
She was eventually able to step in and grab his arms, allowing police to tackle him and release the boy, identified as Mark Jason Pineda.
Mark was taken to hospital with two small nicks on his neck where the ice pick had been held against his skin. He was otherwise unharmed.
Parparan had reportedly walked to the district of Barangay Kristong Hari in Quezon City from Cavite, more than 13 miles away, before suddenly taking the child hostage at around 11pm on Friday night.
The crisis was resolved in the early hours of Saturday morning. There are some conflicting reports about how the hostage-taking ended with local news outlets saying the boy's mother saw her chance to step in when Parparan briefly dropped the ice pick.
However, police claim that negotiators talked him down.
He was arrested and is now facing charges of serious illegal detention, according to Quezon City Police District Chief Superintendent Mario O Dela Vega.
Chief Supt Dela Vega said in a statement on the force's website: 'The hostage negotiator opted to wait and put on hold any tactical manoeuvre and decided to wear down the suspect who appeared to be suffering from a mental breakdown and has no clear demands for his brash actions.
'The method employed by police finally paid off when it compelled the troubled suspect to ask for drinking water providing for an avenue for police to negotiate and bargain with him that eventually ended the stalemate around 7.30am in the morning with the release of the hostage.'
Threat: Parparan appears to tighten his grip on the young boy as the woman moves closer
Brave: Local news reports claim the woman pictured, understood to be the mother of the young hostage, seized an opportunity to restrain Parparan when he set down his ice pick
Negotiations: A woman reported to be the captured boy's mother is seen alongside police negotiators attempting to defuse the situation in Barangay Kristong Hari
'Breakdown': The 24-year-old hostage-taker, identified as Reimer Parparan, appears distressed as he holds an ice pick to the neck of nine-year-old Mark Jason Pineda in Quezon City in the Philippines
