Before you continue
This case involves crimes against children. Casepin presents the record in neutral, non-graphic language. Choose whether to continue.
The short answer
In April 1998, an 18-year-old gunman in Cúa, Venezuela, took a woman and her family hostage during a failed bakery robbery, leading to a seven-hour standoff that ended when a police marksman fatally shot him to save the hostage.
The coverage index
No one's coverage is attached to this file yet.
Know great coverage of this case?
A documentary, a podcast episode, a careful long-form video. Suggest it and an editor will review it before it appears here.
Suggest coverage for 1998 Cúa hostage crisisThe case file
On April 5, 1998, an 18-year-old man named Héctor Duarte Bahamonte attempted to rob a bakery at gunpoint in Cúa, Venezuela, a town roughly 50 km south of the capital, Caracas. Police intervened and shot Duarte in the arm, which prompted him to flee and take hostages in a nearby residential building. He entered an apartment and took 44-year-old Nancy López and her family hostage on the ninth floor of the block. During the incident, Duarte shot two of the hostages, including a 9-year-old boy, before he emerged from the building with López as his primary hostage.
Once outside, Duarte held his revolver to López's temple and demanded a vehicle to facilitate his escape to Caracas, threatening to kill her if his demands were not met. Police cordoned off the surrounding neighborhood, and police chief Ivan Simonovis took command of the rescue operation. Over the course of roughly seven hours, police and a police psychologist attempted to negotiate with Duarte, including allowing him to speak with his mother by phone, but he repeatedly rejected offers to surrender peacefully and threatened to kill López if police killed him. Throughout the ordeal, López reportedly remained largely calm despite the threat to her life.
The standoff ended when a police marksman, positioned near a police van used by the negotiator, fired a single shot that killed Duarte. López broke free with only minor injuries and was reported to be in shock but otherwise unharmed. Duarte was taken to an ambulance but was declared dead at the scene. The two other hostages who had been shot earlier survived after being taken to a hospital, and all surviving victims were reported to be recovering safely.
The following day, López spoke to reporters about the experience, describing feeling "born again" and stating that she had asked God to forgive Duarte, saying she did not understand why such events happen but wished for him to rest in peace.
News crews filmed the end of the standoff, and the footage was later featured in television broadcasts and crime documentaries, including the films Banned! In America and Banned from Television, both of which misreported the location of the incident. In June 2017, the footage resurfaced and went viral in India after being falsely circulated on social media as video of a police sniper killing an ISIS-affiliated terrorist in Spain; fact-checking outlets subsequently confirmed the footage was from the 1998 incident in Venezuela.
5 dated entries · 1998–2017
Héctor Duarte Bahamonte attempts to rob a bakery in Cúa, Venezuela, is shot in the arm by police, and takes hostages including Nancy López and her family in a nearby residential building.
During a seven-hour standoff, Duarte shoots two hostages, including a 9-year-old boy, and later threatens to kill López on a street outside the building unless given a vehicle to escape.
A police marksman shoots Duarte in the face, killing him instantly and freeing López, who sustains only minor injuries.
Nancy López is interviewed by reporters about the ordeal, describing feeling 'born again' and expressing forgiveness toward Duarte.
Footage of Duarte's shooting goes viral in India after being falsely presented on social media as a sniper killing an ISIS terrorist in Spain; fact-checking sites confirm the footage is from the 1998 Venezuela incident.
3 named in this file
Victims first. Every legal label is set from public records and court outcomes, not from the prose.
18-year-old man shot and killed by a police marksman during the standoff after taking hostages; no criminal charges were possible due to his death.[3]
44-year-old woman taken hostage at gunpoint by Héctor Duarte; escaped with minor injuries after police shot Duarte.[3]
Police chief who took charge of the rescue operation to save Nancy López.[3]
3 cited
Coverage is not a source: every fact in this file rests on the records below.
Pressaparchive.comAccessed Jul 7, 2026
Pressboomlive.inAccessed Jul 7, 2026
EncyclopedicWikipediaAccessed Jul 7, 2026
Trust
Are you family of someone named in this file? Corrections and removal requests from victims’ families are prioritized.
Near this case
UNSOLVEDListenLa Vega Parish, Caracas, Venezuela · 2020s
On 8 January 2021, Venezuelan security forces raided La Vega Parish in Caracas to seize control from a criminal organization, resulting in a reported death toll of 23 or more people that human rights groups say included extrajudicial killings.
Llaguno Overpass, near Miraflores Palace, Caracas, Venezuela · 2000s
On 11 April 2002, gunfire near the Llaguno Overpass in central Caracas during a mass march toward Miraflores Palace left 19 people dead and about 127 injured, an event that preceded the 2002 Venezuelan coup attempt. Responsibility for the shootings remains disputed, and no one was ultimately convicted.
Image record·CC BY-SA 3.0·SourceSOLVEDListenBudyonnovsk, Stavropol Krai, Russia · 1995
In June 1995, Chechen separatist fighters led by Shamil Basayev, who was killed in 2006 before facing trial, seized a hospital in Budyonnovsk, Russia, holding over 2,000 hostages for six days; the siege ended after Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin agreed to Basayev's demands, but at least 129 people were killed.
Credit: Mayimbú·CC BY-SA 4.0·SourceSOLVEDListenJapanese Ambassador's Residence, San Isidro District · 1996
On 17 December 1996, 14 Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA) militants seized the Japanese ambassador's residence in Lima, Peru, taking hundreds hostage; the 126-day siege ended on 22 April 1997 with a military raid that killed all 14 militants, one hostage, and two commandos, followed by years of investigations into alleged extrajudicial killings of surrendered rebels.
Credit: Frankk785·CC BY-SA 3.0·SourceSOLVEDListenLegislative Assembly of El Salvador, San Salvador · 1993
Between 1993 and 1995, former soldiers of the Armed Forces of El Salvador stormed the country's Legislative Assembly on four occasions to demand unpaid wartime compensation, twice taking hostages including sitting legislators before crises were resolved through negotiation.
SOLVEDListenTrujillo, Venezuela · 1812
In 1813, Simón Bolívar issued a decree in Trujillo, Venezuela, authorizing the killing of Spanish-born civilians who did not actively support South American independence, while granting amnesty to Americans regardless of prior collaboration with Spanish authorities — a policy that fueled mutual atrocities during the Venezuelan war of independence until it was formally ended in 1820.
