Ukrainian law enforcement agents have detained the hostage-taker, SBU official Serhiy Pun said.
Earlier in the day, Ukrainian Deputy Interior Minister Anton Gerashchenko said he could not confirm claims that the malefactor had requested 40,000 hryvnia ($1,400).
"The bank staff have left the building, the head of the department volunteered to stay. A special police operation named Grom ['thunder'] is underway. The police have launched talks with the terrorist", the deputy minister said on his Facebook page.
According to the minister, a representative of the bank called the police and told them a man in his 30s had entered the building, said he had a bomb in his backpack, and asked to call law enforcement in.
On 21 July, 44-year-old man Maksim Krivosh hijacked a bus with 20 passengers in the centre of Lutsk. The hostage-taker had explosives and weapons. The police then launched an operation called "Hostage" to deal with the situation. According to the regional national police chief, Yury Kroshko, the attacker put forth general demands and complained about the political system. In particular, he demanded that President Zelensky urge citizens to watch the movie "Earthlings”. After about 12 hours, the hijacker eventually released all the hostages and was detained by the police.
