FBI: Officers stormed bunker when child in danger
MIDLAND CITY, Ala. (AP) - Officers stormed an underground bunker in Alabama where a 5-year-old boy had been held hostage for nearly a week, rescuing the child and leaving the boy's abductor dead, officials said Monday.
Steve Richardson with the FBI's office in Mobile said at a news conference Monday afternoon that negotiations had deteriorated with 65-year-old Jimmy Lee Dykes, a man neighbors described as an isolated loner. Dykes had been seen with a gun, and officers believed the boy was in imminent danger, Richardson said.
Officers stormed the bunker just after 3 p.m. CST to rescue the child, who was taken to a hospital in nearby Dothan. Officials have said the child has Asperger's syndrome.
However, it was not immediately clear how Dykes died.
Melissa Nighton, the city clerk in Midland City, said a woman had been praying in the town center Monday afternoon. Not long after, the mayor called her with news that Dykes was dead and that the boy was safe.
"She must have had a direct line to God because shortly after she left, they heard the news," Nighton said.
Neighbors described Dykes as a man who once beat a dog to death with a lead pipe, threatened to shoot children for setting foot on his property, and patrolled his yard at night with a flashlight and a firearm.
Government records and interviews with neighbors indicate that Dykes joined the Navy in Midland City, serving on active duty from 1964 to 1969. His record shows several awards, including the Vietnam Service Medal and the Good Conduct Medal. During his service, Dykes was trained in aviation maintenance.
He had some scrapes with the law in Florida, including a 1995 arrest for improper exhibition of a weapon. The misdemeanor was dismissed. He also was arrested for marijuana possession in 2000.
He returned to Alabama about two years ago, moving onto the rural tract about 100 yards from his nearest neighbors.
Steve Richardson with the FBI's office in Mobile said at a news conference Monday afternoon that negotiations had deteriorated with 65-year-old Jimmy Lee Dykes, a man neighbors described as an isolated loner. Dykes had been seen with a gun, and officers believed the boy was in imminent danger, Richardson said.
Officers stormed the bunker just after 3 p.m. CST to rescue the child, who was taken to a hospital in nearby Dothan. Officials have said the child has Asperger's syndrome.
However, it was not immediately clear how Dykes died.
Melissa Nighton, the city clerk in Midland City, said a woman had been praying in the town center Monday afternoon. Not long after, the mayor called her with news that Dykes was dead and that the boy was safe.
"She must have had a direct line to God because shortly after she left, they heard the news," Nighton said.
Neighbors described Dykes as a man who once beat a dog to death with a lead pipe, threatened to shoot children for setting foot on his property, and patrolled his yard at night with a flashlight and a firearm.
Government records and interviews with neighbors indicate that Dykes joined the Navy in Midland City, serving on active duty from 1964 to 1969. His record shows several awards, including the Vietnam Service Medal and the Good Conduct Medal. During his service, Dykes was trained in aviation maintenance.
He had some scrapes with the law in Florida, including a 1995 arrest for improper exhibition of a weapon. The misdemeanor was dismissed. He also was arrested for marijuana possession in 2000.
He returned to Alabama about two years ago, moving onto the rural tract about 100 yards from his nearest neighbors.
However it was done and we may never know, I am happy that the boy is safe and the crazy dog killer is dead.
Say what you want about guns but this time it is good guys 1 and dipstick 0.Â
I'll tell how he died, shot right between the eyes.
All I can say is I am thankful that this little boy is ok.
Uhhh ... Jimmy Hoffa .... no wait, this is a tough one, can I have a second guess?
According to another reliable news source, witnesses heard one boom, and one shot! I'll given you one guess who got shot? Â
Glad they got the boy out safe. LE said he was walking around with a gun in his hand. Whatever you need to say as an excuse to take him out. Good job. Now the boy can have his sixth birthday.
So thankful the little boy is safe and reunited with his family!! Now here is to hoping this experience won't ruin this little boy's entire life. Jimmy Lee Dykes deserves to rot for what he did ...
I thought the paranoid idiot built it as a "storm-proof" bunker in the first place. How, exactly, does one storm a storm-proof bunker without blowing it to smithereens?
 @jpk I wonder if he was walking around under the ventilation shaft, and they took the opportunity to take a shot straight down the pipe.. Then actually storm the bunker after the fact..
 @jpk Forgot to lock the deadbolt?
@HuskyKMA Dykes now IS the deadbolt, or dead dolt! LOL
Apparently God takes hostages, releases them on demand via prayer from some criminal he made in his image. Starts fires to put them out, sounds like a dastardly fellow. The real heroes are the men and women that helped rescue this little boy, don't thank god - Thank the Alabama state and local LE!
 @OliverNicholas Yes the real heroes are the men and women that God sent to help rescue the little boy
@OliverNicholas I don't know who you think you are, but you are not God. A man can thank whomever he chooses, without inane comment from you.
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I agree that these hero's deserver our gratitude, but I also believe people can give thanks God if they believe it's appropriate, even if you don't.
What is that saying about a good guy with a gun?
 @Siwash The story isn't clear.. The bad guy might have shot himself.
 @StealthActivist That does not matter.  The impetus for his death was the presence of armed law enforcement in close proximity to him. Â
Thank God!!!! And, I pray that the sweet little boy will be okay. ):Â
Is the boy Really OK ? This is wrong to go on so loooooong.....
It may not be clear how he died, but it's pretty clear how he lived - doesn't sounds like he'll be missed.
Glad the kid is ok, I wonder what or who killed Dykes? Probably a stroke but an honored vet with medals? what would turn a person like this into a bad guy? at any rate, glad it is over some of those bunkers can't be entered into so easily . some have booby taps, some have fake corridors..but every time they post a story about bunkers being stormed, the preppers will make upgrades as they do not want any one in there units...
Good guys win in the end!! I'm so happy for the boy and the mom, and also the LE who kept their cool this entire time. It was hard, hard work, but looks like the amazing skills of the LE officers, together with people's faith (yes, those prayers that some joke about), helped bring everything together for closure.Â
God bless them all.Â
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Glad it's finally over and the kid is ok (physically anyway, and I hope not too traumatized).
Well the FBI hostage rescue assaulters can aim fairly well, so the guy died almost instantly and didnt suffer. Oh well. Still 99% good news.
Those are some happy parents tonight! What a relief.
"However, it was not immediately clear how Dykes died."
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He must have drown.Seriously, I was wondering why they didn't just back a truck up to the communication pipe, give the guy a microphone so he could go on a "live broadcast" and tell the world his problem, and a couple of minutes after he stops talking, drop a camera down and if it looks clear kick the door in and put the kid on oxygen.Whatever they did worked just as well I guess. Glad to hear it!
@Playanekes Wow! What a strategy! What a deep thinker you are! Why don't you run for President?
Yo, headline writer, wasn't the child in danger all along?
In one new account, Dykes was described a a "paranoid survivalist." That's redundant, isn't it?
 @Mechanic When the worst happens and you need something, and they don't have it you'll be singing a different tune. Survivalist translates to prepared.
@axpman It can translate that way. Mostly, it translates into "nutcakes."
If at anytime we need to thank a cop, this is it! WOW!
i really thought this would end badly. It was going on for so long. Good work FBI/LE i hope the kid recovers from this psychological nightmare.Â
@toobadsoosad It did end badly. A man. delusional and paranoid as he was, died. Started badly with the death of the bus driver, Mr. Poland, too.
 @Mechanic  @toobadsoosad No, that's how it started. The kidnapper is dead. Nobody here but you has any sympathy for what you mistakenly call that "man."It ended just fine.
@Playanekes What? You can't feel bad about someone who is totally screwed up and fighting demons like he was? Yes, evil things happen in the world, and Dykes did some of them. So did you. So did I. I have never killed or kidnapped anyone, and I trust that you have not. But I do feel some sympathy for the torment that he obviously felt. I believe that Dykes' death was fitting and almost certainly unavoidable. That does not turn me into a cheerleader for his death. The ONLY good news out of all of this is that the end was not worse.
Glad this turned out well with a safe outcome for the boy.
Glad he got the reward he so earned for his crimes! Hope the child and his family can get over this without emotional trauma.
@jpk Clearly, the guy was a nutcase. Nonethelss, it is still a tragedy that anyone had to die. The good news? Well, it wasn't the boy.
Sounds like the police took a chance and got lucky. Â From the reports, I doubt if they had any other options. Â Sometimes the good guys do win one.
quick dont bully the kid, or deny him cake!!! LOL
 @Laughing at Liberals Ummmm....what?
 @Laughing at Liberals This guy posts hate in every section about gays. Just so everyone knows, Laughing at Liberals is the person people refer to when they say "bully".
It is one thing to say your opinion. It is another to preach hate and make jokes about people that have died at the hands of bullies.
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 @Laughing at Liberals WTF is that?
 @Laughing at Liberals I don't get it. Are you trying to show everyone that you are really the bully? Fine, you hate gays Just leave it at that. But don't post in every section lame jokes about a kid that killed himself and you hate for gays.
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@Laughing at Liberals Another nonsensical post from one with no sense.
Finally some good news! Awesome!Â
"it was not immediately clear how Dykes died."
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I'm sure it's a total mystery... They know exactly how they shot him and how many times.
@axpman You don't suppose, like so many other crazies in hostage situations, he offed himself as soon as the cops burst in? Maybe the kid shot him. Maybe there was a flash-bang grenade and Dykes died of a heart attack. The police, in all likelihood, know how he died. That information has not been released, so, yeah. In fact it is still not clear [to us] how Dykes died.