THORNTON, Colo. (KDVR) — A person was taken hostage Tuesday at a Thornton shopping center, where a suspected car thief had fled from police and refused to surrender.

The Thornton Police Department tweeted about the incident at 6 p.m. It happened at the Mission Trace North Shopping Center at East 120th Avenue and Colorado Boulevard.

Police said officers chased the suspected car thief, identified only as male, into one of the businesses as the shopping center. He then refused to come out and “did have a person hostage for a brief period.”

Police tweeted at 6:43 p.m. “the hostage was soon released” and the suspect fled, but officers soon arrested him nearby.

No further information was immediately released on the suspect’s identity.