2010-09-03 10:13

SILVER SPRING, Md. – Police had been negotiating with James Jae Lee for several hours and intended to keep him talking for as long as it took to safely resolve the standoff at the Discovery Channel's headquarters. Inside the lobby, Lee's three hostages had no intention of waiting.

As the two Discovery employees and a security guard got ready to make a break for it, officers moving in on Lee heard him shout and then a "pop" that they thought might have been gunfire or a homemade bomb detonating. So they stepped out from behind a wall and shot him dead, ending the drama that unfolded Wednesday at the cable network's complex just north of Washington.

It turned out that Lee was armed with starter pistols, police said Thursday as they revealed new details about the culmination of Lee's yearslong crusade against the Discovery networks, which he faulted in fanatical Web posts for offering programming that promoted overpopulation.

But Lee, 43, was also carrying homemade pipe bombs, one of which went off when he was shot. Authorities found and detonated four more devices Thursday at a home about 3 miles north of the Discovery building. The owner of the house called police and said Lee had stayed there, according to Montgomery County Police Lt. Robert Bolesta.

Investigators were trying to determine whether Lee had a car or a truck.

Authorities had been negotiating for roughly four hours Wednesday afternoon when the tactical team opened fire.

"For most of the time, the hostages were laying on the ground, and he didn't engage them much other than saying on the phone, 'I don't care about these people,'" Montgomery County Police Chief Thomas Manger said Thursday. "I believe he was not intending to come out of there alive. ... He told us many times over the course of hours that he was ready to die."

None of the hostages or any of the 1,900 other people who work at Discovery Communications Inc.'s building was hurt.

"Those hostages were tremendously courageous," Manger said, adding that he understood why they were preparing an escape.

"I think they probably figured that was their best chance. I don't know who came up with a plan or who gave a signal, but they were there for four hours and had the presence of mind to maintain themselves and ultimately get out of there safely."

Discovery Communications officials said a security guard who was taken hostage served as a calming influence and helped police throughout the ordeal. Montgomery County Police Capt. Darryl McSwain said the guard couldn't speak with police during the standoff but may have done some motioning.

David Leavy, a Discovery spokesman, said the guard is a former military officer who served in Iraq. The guard and the two other male hostages were at home Thursday with friends and family, according to Leavy, who added that the company plans to seriously review security measures around the building.

Security firm Whelan SFI, which is headquartered in St. Louis and has offices in Washington and in Landover, Md., said the guard works for the company, but they declined to identify him.