- Brandon Logan is accused of threatening to shoot two journalists on Monday
- The reporters were approached by the suspect in the parking lot of the Clayton County Sheriff's Office in Jonesboro
- The suspect has been charged with assault, battery and false imprisonment.
A TV news crew in Atlanta was taken hostage by a drunken homeless man who claimed he was armed with a gun, police have revealed.
Brandon Logan is accused of threatening to shoot Atlanta News First journalists Asia Wilson and Lauren Swaim if they called the police and demanded they order food for him.
The reporters were sitting in their news van Monday evening, preparing to go live from the parking lot at the Clayton County Sheriff's Office in Jonesboro, when they were approached by the suspect.
Wilson managed to text her newsroom and alert them to the situation. Their colleagues tried to contact the Clayton County Sheriff's Office but called 911 after receiving no help, according to Atlanta News First.
Police arrived about an hour and a half after reporters were first approached by Logan, who officials said had never owned a gun.
Brandon Logan is accused of threatening to shoot two Atlanta journalists on Monday
Police arrived on the scene about an hour and a half after the journalists were first approached
Atlanta News First journalists Asia Wilson and Lauren Swaim waited for more than an hour for police
ANF presenter Allen Devlin said the text messages the journalists sent while being held hostage were “terrifying, chilling messages”.
“Things like, 'We need help,' 'He's going to shoot,'” Devlin said.
After failing to get help from the sheriff's office, three station employees, including Schrader, responded to the scene. They flagged down a police car during the twenty-minute drive from the newsroom to the sheriff's office.
That's when the officer found the two journalists – still with the suspect.
Logan, who appeared in court on Tuesday, has been charged with assault, battery, public intoxication and false imprisonment.
Wilson managed to text her newsroom and alert them of the situation
Wilson and photojournalist Lauren Swaim were approached by the suspect on Monday evening
“The victims attempted to leave the premises, but Brandon Logan's threats and body movements pretending to have a weapon made the victims feel as if they were being held hostage,” Judge Latrevia Kates-Johnson said, as reported by WSB. TV.
The homeless man also allegedly pushed one of the journalists and tried to hit the other.
“It was a strange situation,” said Erik Schrader, general manager of the CBS affiliate channel.
Schrader told AJC, “We really want answers as to why it took so long to free them. I'm hopeful that in the coming days we can find out what led to that.'