European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 22, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 2b the stars and strikes Friday april 22.1 bus mexican Bank siege ends gunmen escape los mochas Mexico a seven gunmen who held 42 people hostage Fol lowing a foiled Bank robbery in Northern Mexico ended their siege thursday and leaped holding two red Cross worker 24 hours after inc ordeal began. Sinaloa slate gov. Francisco Labastida Ochoa said the gunmen left in two armoured cars taking with them to red Cross Rescue War Kors As hostage. Five people arc killed and 15 wounded in the Cense standoff in the Cut of California port of los mochas. The 42 Gnu arcs still in the Bank we retaken to n local ii Spito by red Cross ambulances. Bastida Ochoa said in a television broadcast thai the escape cars had enough gasoline fur the gunmen to leave the City. He said in the interview on the private major television network Tel visa thai the agreement allows police to look forthe gunmen later. The governor also said there were no injuries in a shooting incident thursday Rooming in which the gunmen grunted weapons from a pickup truck oils id the Bant. Earlier news reports said one gun Man was wounded by police gunfire. One of the gunmen speaking by Tele phone with � radio station in Culiacan the slate capita said thursday morning they had reached an agreement with Redcross workers that allowed for the gun men of leave the building safely. One of the gunmen who gave his name Only As Alfredo said two of them went out of the Bank heading toward an ambulance bul instead went 10 a pickup truck where they grabbed some guns. The police started firing and the gun men rushed Back inside Alfredo  Laid one of the gunmen was wounded. Earlier in a Telephone Call to Monico s major morning to news program on televise a unman said officials Brake their agreement by shooting. He also demanded a helicopter Labastida Ochoa got on the line an offered to Lei the gunmen meet with a committee of red Cross officials journalists a roman Catholic priest and slate police who would guarantee safety and due process of Law. Hundreds of police surrounded the Vaname Bank in los mochas a City of 120,000 about 500 Miles South of Tuc son Ariz. Jems Acosta a spokesman for the local red Cross said one of its Rescue workers was among those killed in a gun fight wednesday Between police and the gunmen. He said the other four victims were a female Bank Teller and three Cus  accounts said the dead included a Bank official and a policeman. Earlier reports said there were six gunmen. The standoff began at 12 45 . Wednesday. Witnesses said the gunmen burst into the Bank and look hostages after an alarm alerted police to the Rob  gunman in Ait interview broadcast live on televise earlier thurs Day morning said All the hostages were being treated Well. Asked where they would go if Given Safe passage he replied i would t Beable to ill you where we would go. We can t turn ourselves in he said. They want to kill  bomber from Page 1 ing up on radar while the air Force has flatly refused to discuss the bomber since design work began i n the 1970s, its general shape has actually been known since 1985 when former Arizo Nasen. Burr Gul Dwater disclosed in resemblance to a flying  the drawing distributed by the air farce wednesday shows an air plane that to some extent resembles a Boomerang. A Small cockpit rises in the Middle on top and inlets for the Jel engines arc placed to each Side of he cockpit also on top of the Wing. The design allows the aircraft to be made without any Sharp or right angles. According a Pentagon sources the plane also relics on the use of radar absorbing coatings on its exterior sur faces and composite materials for construction. The design has Long been the object of experimentation by Northrop corp., which is building the b-2 for the air Force. The company flew a propeller driven version of S.C. a plane known As the xb-35.ini 946. A ice pow Rcd version the yb-49, firs Lew in late 1947 and was tested by the air Force. Bul the service never purchased any of the planes and  with lie prototypes ended by the Early 1950s. The air Forte declined wednesday to give precise Date for the Maiden flight saying Only thai it would occur this fall and involve a Short hop from the manufacturing Plant Al Palmdale Calif., to Edwards fab Calif. As the first  approaches Many actions associated Wilh preparations for thai flight can est be accomplished in the open without com promising program Security the service said in explaining ils relaxation of secrecy. Domish of S.C. things As performance characteristics Crew size and maximum payload re main classified the air Force said. Indeed some of the details about the plane s design for example the placement of the engine exhaust outlets have been deliberately masked in the artist s rendering service sources said. The air Force did acknowledge however the plane is going to Cost More than originally projected. While the acquisition of 132 by bombers was originally estimated to Cost s36.6 billion in 1981 dollars the air Force is re evaluating cos estimates for the program As a result of current and projected fiscal  the service said. Group says if will try Higgins for spying for the criminal . Beirut Lebanon apr a pro iranian under ground group thursday said it will put kidnapped .marine u. Col. William a Higgins on trial on charges of spying for the criminal United  this criminal will be turned Over today to the Tri Bunal of the oppressed to iry him for the crimes he has committed said a Type written statement signed bythe organization of the oppressed on Earth. The arabic language statement was accompanied by a Black and White photograph of Higgins 43, of Dan Ville by. He was serving with a . Observer group in South Lebanon when kidnapped feb. 17. It was the fourth statement from the group since Higgins was abducted by gunmen near the ancient port of Tyre. The statement came three Days after Beirut s Chris Tian run voice of Lebanon radio station claimed Hig gins had been killed by his abductors during dashes Between pro syrian and iranian backed shiite militias in South Lebanon. Ii was not immediately Clear whether thursday s communique was meant to refute the radio report orto i the stage for announcing Higgins death. Counting Higgins. There Are 22 foreigners missing and presumed kidnapped in Lebanon they arc nine americans four frenchmen three britons one irishman one italian one West German one Indian and two unidentified men. The longest held it Terry a. Anderson 40, chief Middle East correspondent for the associated press who was kidnapped March 16, 1985. The statement about Higgins delivered thursday to the British Reuters news Agency office in Beirut said the kidnappers had completed their investigation of his activities in Lebanon. It said among the charges he faced was spying for the criminal United slates on our lebanese and pales this photo of la col. William r. Hug Fra we  by Hla Apton Indian Peoples and Active participation in american conspiracies against our moslem  the statement also said Higgins was accused of supervising a Pentagon team to combat lebanese and palestinian islamic organizations in Palestine and Leb  the statement said Higgins was charged with collecting information and reporting to the Pentagon about the military and political situation in South  k said he also provided the defense deportment Wilh his personal views on the situation in the South which include All military activities in resisting Israel and ways of bringing them under  freed hostages flown to Kuwait Algiers Algeria a thirty one hostages Reed after i s Days aboard a hijacked kuwaiti jumbo Jet flew to wailing families in Kuwait thursday. Offi Cial in Beirut Lebanon denied reports that the hijackers found Haven in Beirut. The 24 passengers and seven Crew met Eben from in Kuwait airways Boeing 747 that was seized april s left Algiers Airport at 3 20p.m. They were freed wednesday. The hijackers had demanded that Kuwait free 17 imprisoned terrorists which Kuwait rejected. By there were reports that Kuwait agreed la commute the death sentences of three of the prisoners. The nine hijackers who had killed two kuwaiti hos tages were believed to have left Algeria after slipping out of the plane ahead of the hostages. A Kuwait news Agency citing unidentified algerian sources said algerian mediators promised the Hijack ers Safe passage to travel to Beirut or Tehran Iran. Western diplomats in Algion said they believe in Hijacker went la Beirut. Meese Choice for no. 2 Justice Post withdraws Washington a attorney general Edwin a Csc s Choice for the no. 2 Post at the Justice department withdrew from consideration wednes Day As Mccase struggled i till top level polls. We be Only had a very few Resig nations Mccase defiantly told a Senate subcommittee on Capitol Hill defending his leadership of the Justice department and his personal a thick in the face of a nearly yearlong criminal investigation. Sen. Ernest Hollings d-s.c., told the attorney general that the Justice depart ment is seemingly in disarray an asked can you continue efficiently and effectively under these circumstances the newspaper Don t have in quite Rihl Meese responded. There s been considerable  John Shepherd the 62-year-old former american bar association president whom metre hurriedly recommended id the White House april 5 to become Dep Uty attorney general pulled out in the face of publicity about an alleged affair Wilh his boo Kite per. My wife and i were not prepared forthe pressures to which someone recommended for this position at Iii time would be subject. Shepherd did in . It also was disclosed that longtime Meese Friend e. Robert Wal Tach now under indictment in the wed tech scan dal had recommended Shepherd to Meese for a Justice department Post in 1984 or 1985 and that Shepherd belongs to in All while country club and an All male social club. Meese told a Senate appropriations subcommittee that he would appoint a acting Deputy while he marches for a replacement to fill the Post