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Two people are dead after a bizarre chain of events Tuesday afternoon in Sioux Falls.
It all started around one o'clock when police say 38-year-old Tyrone Smith went to his children's day care near 18th Street and Holly Avenue and demanded his kids at gunpoint.
Just a few minutes later, police were called to the Cost Cutters parking lot near 41st Street and Kiwanis Avenue for an accident.
When they arrived, they found a woman who had been shot to death in a car. Police believe the crash they responded to was a result of Amanda Connors being shot by the suspect.
About the same time, police were called about a hostage situation inside the business.
Police surrounded the strip mall and about 20 minutes after they arrived on the scene, four women, including the mother of Smith's children, were released along with the children. None of them were hurt.
After the women left the Cost Cutters store, the SWAT team took precautions before getting inside the store around 4 p.m. and discovering Smith was dead.
Police believe the four employees and the children were released freely earlier in the day.
"From what I'm told, he never was actually going to hold them. He basically allowed them to leave. I don't know what the conversation was when they left. I don't think they were forced to stay or go. They left on their own," Sioux Falls Police Sgt. Loren McManus said.
KELOLAND News spoke with a Cost Cutters employee who was inside when the suspect came into the store. Jamie Fischer shared recalled what happened inside.
"I had a bullet graze my left leg. Then later a gun pointed to my head. Didn't really know what to think or do. All I thought was, 'I'm going to die.' Then I told myself to shut up and just prayed," Fischer said.
Earlier in the day, police said the children were safe and in their custody. Their mother was also not hurt.
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