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Bodycam video shows police open fire on man holding 12-year-old hostage at gunpoint

Body camera footage shows moment police open fire  (Henderson Police Department)
Body camera footage shows moment police open fire (Henderson Police Department)

Body camera footage shows the harrowing moment seven police open fire on a man holding a gun to a 12-year-old boy as officers yell "there's a kid in the car… there's a kid in the car… there's a kid in the car."

Neither survived.

Jason Neo Bourne, 38, had just shot and killed two women before taking the boy hostage at an apartment complex in Nevada, police said.

In the video released by Henderson Police Department, officers can be seen aiming rifles at the car while a woman says off-camera that Mr Bourne was pointing his weapon at the boy's head.

"Take the shot if you have it, but don't hit that f*cking…" she can be heard saying before getting cut off by gunfire.

As a hail of bullets were fired at the vehicle officers can be heard alternately yelling "there's a kid in the car" and "ceasefire" while dashcam footage shows the seven officers surrounding the Cadillac Escalade.

While Mr Bourne was killed in the shootout, Henderson Police deputy chief David Burns said in a video statement that the child was killed by Mr Bourne. It has not been confirmed whether the boy was struck by police gunfire.

“Officers were unable to rescue the juvenile before he succumbed to the injuries inflicted by Bourne,” Mr Burns said.

Mr Bourne died of gunshot wounds while the boy, identified as Joseph Hawatmeh, died of gunshot wounds to the head and chest. The Clark County coroner’s office ruled both deaths were homicide, according to The Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The shootout took place on 3 November after police responded to reports of gunshots at The Douglas at Stonelake Apartments, where they found Dianne Hawatmeh, 38, and Veronica Muniz, 33, dead from gunshot wounds to the head.

Ms Hawatmeh's 16-year-old daughter, Yasmeen, was wounded, family friends told the Review-Journal.

Mr Burns said in the video statement released this week that investigators believe Mr Bourne lived in the apartment above the Hawatmeh family but that a motive for the killings was unclear.

In calls to 911 made before the shooting, Mr Bourne can be heard claiming he was from the future and was a character from the Batman movies while threatening to kill the child.

Police said Mr Bourne told dispatchers that "(Joseph) wants a helicopter, and he says he wants it now because he’s scared."

The seven officers involved were placed on administrative leave while the shooting is investigated.