Woman with gun taken into custody after standoff in Seattle

SEATTLE (AP) — A woman armed with a handgun was taken into custody after an hourlong standoff at the FBI building in Seattle on Wednesday, authorities said.

The woman walked into a publicly accessible area where people have to wait to be buzzed into the lobby, according to FBI spokesperson Steve Bernd.

She pointed the gun at herself, the Seattle Police Department said in an emailed statement. A hostage negotiation team eventually persuaded her to lay the gun at her feet and surrender.

No hostages were taken and no one was hurt, authorities said.

The woman’s identity was not immediately released.

“We are continuing to investigate her motives, and no charging decisions have been made yet,” the FBI said in an emailed statement.

The FBI has reported an uptick in the number of threats against bureau personnel and facilities in the last few years. A man armed with an AR-15 rifle and a nail gun tried to breach the FBI’s Cincinnati field office in 2022 and was killed hours later after a standoff with authorities.

And in August, a man rammed a barricade at an FBI office in Atlanta and then tried to follow an FBI employee into the secure parking lot on foot.