GUNMAN ESCAPES STANDOFF; CAPTIVES UNHARMED; RESIDENTS SHAKEN IN SIEGE AT PET CLINIC.Byline: Troy Anderson Daily News Staff Writer Police surrounded the West Hills Animal Hospital for more than four hours Tuesday, after an armed robber briefly held a number of employees and customers and then apparently escaped, officials said. A veterinarian veterinarian /vet·er·i·nar·i·an/ (vet?er-i-nar´e-an) a person trained and authorized to practice veterinary medicine and surgery; a doctor of veterinary medicine. vet·er·i·nar·i·an n. reported the robbery about 4:50 p.m. and police rushed to the scene, closing off Platt Avenue at Victory Boulevard Victory Boulevard is a major thoroughfare on Staten Island, measuring approximately 8.0 miles (12.87 km) and stretching from the west shore community of Travis to the upper east shore communities of St. George and Tompkinsville. and evacuating about 100 residents as well as occupants of nearby businesses and a public library branch across the street. Soon after police arrived and were setting up a perimeter, five to six employees and three customers emerged from the building, including a hospital nurse carrying a guinea pig guinea pig (gĭn`ē), domesticated form of the cavy, Cavia porcellus, a South American rodent. It is unrelated to the pig; the name may refer to its shrill squeal. named Spike. Jennifer Scruton of West Hills said she, her mother and her boyfriend were at the hospital for a checkup check·up n. 1. An examination or inspection. 2. A general physical examination. checkup See Yearly checkup. on Spike when the gunman came in and took money out of the cash register. ``It's kind of odd that someone would want to rob an animal hospital,'' Scruton said. At least one person living near the clinic remained holed up throughout the ordeal - 15-year-old Briana Lee. Briana's mother, Tralana, got a frantic call at her Century City business office from her daughter, who was inside their condominium next door. ``She was watching it happen out of the window,'' the mother said. ``She heard the helicopters and saw the police everywhere. She stepped outside, and a neighbor told her to go back. I feel absolutely helpless,'' said Tralana Lee, who rushed to the scene. A Los Angeles Police Department "LAPD" and "L.A.P.D." redirect here. For other uses, see LAPD (disambiguation).  This article or section is written like an . Special Weapons and Tactics team was deployed around the building and waited until 8:25 p.m. before going in to search for the gunman. The SWAT team was inside for nearly an hour. Although police continued to search, LAPD 1. LAPD - Link Access Procedure on the D channel. 2. LAPD - Los Angeles Police Department. spokesman Sgt. William Guerrero said the man might have escaped about the same time the customers and staffers came out. ``Apparently it's going to turn out that the suspect is gone,'' Guerrero said. CAPTION(S): photo PHOTO SWAT officers prepare to enter the West Hills Animal Hospital to look for an armed robber who stormed the building Tuesday. Michael Owen
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