BELL TOWER, Fla. — For the first time, a Lee County SWAT sniper and a former hostage are sharing their harrowing experiences from a 2024 hostage situation at the Bank of America in Bell Tower.
A tense standoff unfolded on Feb. 6 when a man claiming to have a bomb and a gun entered the bank, forcing most people to leave — except for two hostages. In an interview with WINK News, the SWAT officer detailed what became a high-stakes SWAT operation that required careful planning and precise execution.
A crisis unfolds
The situation escalated quickly. A 911 caller relayed the fear inside the bank: “A guy just entered the Bank of America and made us all get out; he said he has a bomb.”
Outside, Lt. Paul Nader, a SWAT sniper with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, was prepared to act. But the bank’s mirrored glass created an obstacle.
“I see an image of myself,” Nader recalled.
Specialized high-tech equipment allowed law enforcement to see inside, revealing the two hostages trapped with the suspect.
“I knew at that point, like if it came to a situation where I had to shoot a hostage-taker, that I knew that I was going to be able to,” Nader said.
RELATED | Video from the Bank of America hostage situation:
The perspective from inside
Gus Rengifo, a bank teller that morning, was one of the two hostages. Speaking publicly about the ordeal for the first time, he described how the suspect held a knife to his throat.
As the SWAT team worked on a strategy, Robbie the Robot-Dog was deployed to gather intel inside the bank. The robotic device provided critical images and rattled the suspect.
“He got very nervous as soon as the Robo-Dog came,” Rengifo said.
With tensions rising, SWAT operators moved into position. Nader and his team made their way into the lobby, carefully lining up a shot that could end the standoff without harming the hostages.
“I came up on the sergeant’s shoulder and started getting a sight picture. I explained to him [that] he needs to put his hand on top of his head so I can have a good play, a stable platform,” Nader said.
A precise shot
Nader calculated his shot with extreme precision, adjusting his aim two inches above his target to ensure a fatal strike.
“And as you see in the video, I only see the crown of his head most of the time,” Nader said. “In order for me to be able to get a shot that’s going to end the scenario without him being able to cut somebody, I have to shoot him in a particular area.”
A single bullet ended the ordeal.
“I took two steps back and I was still OK,” Nader said. “No problem. I was cool, calm and collected. I just came today to do my job.”
The second hostage, a woman standing near the suspect, was unharmed, though the force of the shot blew her hair back. While she needed time to recover mentally, she sustained no physical injuries.
A new path forward
Standing side by side, Nader and Rengifo reflected on their shared experience and the split-second decisions that helped bring the situation to a close.
“I haven’t talked to him like this before, and hearing how he kept this hostage taker pushed over in our view, I look at him as way more of a hero than I am because he’s the one in danger. He’s the one with a knife against his throat,” Nader said.
In the months after the incident, Rengifo made a major career change — leaving his job at the bank to join the Lee County Sheriff’s Office.
“I’m very proud of him as a fellow citizen and as a human. He’s a rock star,” Nader said.
The hostage-taker, Sterling Alavache, was killed by Nader’s shot. While the bank was occupied at the start of the ordeal, Alavache allowed most people to leave, keeping only Rengifo and one other hostage behind.
Now, over a year later, the SWAT team’s precision and the resilience of those inside the bank stand as a testament to the life-or-death stakes of that day.
