The gunman wearing a military uniform freed all but three of the hostages.
TBILISI:
A masked gunman wearing a military uniform freed all but three of the 19 hostages on Wednesday, caught in a raid on a branch of the Commercial Bank of Georgia, private TV station Mtavari reported.
The gunman entered the bank of the provincial town of Zugdidi at 3 p.m. (11:00 GMT) and demanded a sum of $ 500,000.
Negotiations between the gunman and the police of the former Soviet republic ensued and continued until late in the evening after the release of most of the hostages, including a pregnant woman.
Mtavari TV reported from the scene that the gunman had come out of the bank building still holding three hostages, one of whom was acting as a negotiator.
Police and local authorities made no immediate comment.
Georgian TV stations showed freed hostages walking towards cars accompanied by relatives. One of the released wrote on his Facebook page that the release took place after money was brought to the shooter.
