Sources: Texas Synagogue Hostage Taker Flew Into JFK Airport, Stayed In NYC Before Incident
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - There's new information about a hostage-taking at a synagogue in Texas.
Law enforcement sources say the gunman flew into John F. Kennedy Airport in New York.
The suspect reportedly stayed here before heading to Texas and taking hostages.
CBS2's Dick Brennan reports on what happened in the synagogue.
"It was terrifying. It was overwhelming, and we are still processing. It has been a lot. It is completely overwhelming," said Rabbi Charlie Cytron Walker.
Walker was one of four hostages held at gunpoint by Malik Faisal Akram, a British citizen, at Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas on Saturday.
Walker described how he and the three other hostages made it through.
"you do what you have to do as a part of rabbinic training. We talk a lot about the idea of being a calm, nonanxious presence," Walker said.
And there was a different kind of training - active shooter training - that helped Walker and the other hostages deal with the situation.
"They really teach you in those moments that when your life is threatened, you need to get to whatever you can to get to safety. Whatever you do to need to get out," Walker said.
The FBIs elite hostage rescue team finally moved in, and Rabbi Walker made their own move. Walker threw a chair at Akram, headed for the door, and all of the hostages got out without a shot being fired.
Akram was killed by agents, and all four hostages made it out safety.
Officials say Akram had asked negotiators for the release of Aafia Siddiqui, who is currently in federal prison in Texas for the attempted murder of U.S. forces in Afghanistan. She's suspected of having ties to Al Qaeda, and has even been called "Lady Al Qaeda."
Police in the United Kingdom have arrested Akram's two teenage sons. Investigators want to find out if the sons knew anything.
