A 2-YEAR-OLD girl who was taken hostage by a man at the Telipok Ria flats in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, today, has been rescued and is receiving medical treatment.

In the 4pm incident, the man, believed to be in his 40s, also allegedly threatened to harm her.

Photos of the incident showed the man holding a knife to the girl’s neck. 

The girl’s clothes also appeared to be soaked with blood. 

The Borneo Post had earlier, quoting witnesses at the scene, reported that the man had abruptly taken the girl, who was playing along a corridor at the flats, hostage.

The man then took the girl into an apartment unit on the fourth floor of the apartment block.

Police, Fire and Rescue Department personnel and an emergency aid team were deployed to the scene.

Sabah Police Commissioner Omar Mammah was also reported to have rushed to the scene. 

Many among the large crowd gathered at the scene said they heard about six gunshots fired. 

The hostage drama ended at 5.30pm, with the child believed to have been taken to an ambulance waiting nearby. 

Police have yet to confirm the man’s condition, but are expected to give a briefing on the incident later today.

It is not yet known what the man’s motives were. – January 13, 2019.