Dynamite Diplomacy: Authorities Prepare to Blow Open ‘Fort’ as Lone Man Holds Out

October 5, 1923, Washington D.C. – In a tense standoff, authorities are poised to blow the doors off a makeshift ‘fort’ built by a desperate convict, who has barricaded himself inside a building at 2111 South Street in Washington D.C. The situation has been unfolding for days, with the convict resorting to automatic pistol fire in response to the puttering of machine gunners outside.

Warden John B. Chilton has expressed his desire to capture the convict without further loss of life, and has discouraged any plans for a frontal assault. The fact that the convict has taken advantage of the dining room as a gun shelter, and has used the kitchen’s heavy steel mixing pans and brick oven as cover, has only added to the complexity of the situation.

As authorities prepare to use dynamite to blast open the ‘fort’, the city holds its breath. Will the plan succeed, or will the convict find a way to escape? Only time will tell.

In a bizarre side note, a 102-year-old woman, Carrie Thompson, was arrested earlier today for begging on the streets of Washington D.C. The elderly woman, who claims to be 102 years old, was taken into custody after police received a tip. Her 77-year-old son, Abner, was on hand to vouch for her age and frailty.