By Patrick Donachie
A man fatally shot himself after holding three people hostage inside his Laurelton home late Wednesday evening, according to the NYPD.
At about 11:30 p.m., police from the 105th Precinct responded to reports of an armed and barricaded emotionally disturbed person, police said. The commanding officer of the 105th Precinct said the man, who was identified as Sukele Lewis in published accounts, was holding a female and two younger individuals hostage at gunpoint. The home was located near the corner of 135th Avenue and 227th Street.
The New York Post identified two of the victims as Edwidge Desgraves, his wife, and her son, Justin Marshall, 17. While police were talking to Lewis, police were able to rescue the three hostages, according to the commanding officer. The Desgraves had been stabbed several times on her head and upper body and Justine, who was rescued, had a stab wound on his upper back, he said. The last hostage was an infant, who was unharmed.
The two stabbing victims were taken to Jamaica Hospital and were listed in stable condition.
Police spoke to the man for close to two hours, but he shot himself in the head and was taken to Jamaica Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Reach reporter Patrick Donachie by e-mail at pdona
