Cave-In-Rock man charged in hostage situation, standoff
CAVE-IN-ROCK, Ill. (AP) - A 36-year-old southern Illinois man has been arrested following a short standoff with police.
According to a press release, Hardin County authorities responded to a report of a barricaded hostage situation near Cave-In-Rock on Sunday. Illinois State Police says a woman called 911 after escaping from an armed man inside a home. She told police the man fired shots inside the home and her three children were still inside.
Police say Clarence Harley Smock of Cave-In-Rock was arrested about an hour and a half later when he tried to leave the home. He's charged with aggravated unlawful restraint, aggravated discharge of a firearm and domestic battery.
Smock is being held in the Massac County Jail on $100,000 bail. It wasn't immediately clear if he has an attorney.
Authorities say the children were unharmed.