LATEST: April 28, 2016, 3:38 PM ET
Baltimore police confirmed the suspect, who was clad in a full-body panda suit and a surgical mask, was shot by a law enforcement sniper as he exited the Fox45 station building after being inside for about an hour.
The suspect was not complying with law enforcement directives to take his hands out of his pockets and was advancing toward officers before he was shot, Baltimore police spokesperson T.J. Smith said in a Thursday afternoon news conference.
Smith said a bomb squad robot was moving around the suspect, who was lying in the road after being shot. He also said the man appears to be conscious and is not dead.
The suspect’s motive is not yet known, Smith said.
ORIGINAL STORY:
A man dressed in what appeared to be a “full body, white panda suit,” strolled into the lobby of Baltimore news station Fox45 (WBFF) and threatened the office with a bomb, according to local media reports.
Citing information from Fox45 News Director Mike Tomko, Fox News reported on air that the office had been completely evacuated after the suspect claimed to have a bomb.
According to live reports from CBS Pittsburgh, the man was being escorted out of the building by several police officers with weapons drawn. But the affiliate cut their footage of the walkout, with anchors saying it appeared officers fired several shots at the man.
Fox News was reporting on air that the suspect had been “neutralized.”
A security guard took the flash drive from the man but didn’t let him past the vestibule of the building. The guard reported the device contained video of the man talking about space and the government before he managed to call 911, according to the Baltimore Sun.
In a video posted on Fox45’s Facebook page, the security guard said, “His first words that came out of his mouth were, ‘This is not a joke, I have a bomb, and I want my message to be heard.'”
The individual has made threats before, Fox News reported, but it was not clear when those threats were made. A Fox45 reporter initially reported a car was on fire in the station’s parking lot.
No injuries were reported and a bomb squad was on the scene.
This post has been updated.
