Police arrest gunman who opened fire in Colorado abortion clinic

Police arrested a gunman who stormed a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic in Colorado Springs on Friday and opened fire with a rifle in a burst of violence that left at least 11 people injured, including five officers, authorities said.

Five hours after the siege began, the suspect was taken into custody, the city of Colorado Springs confirmed in a message posted on the municipal Twitter account.

A Reuters photographer at the scene saw a man in a white T-shirt, with his hands cuffed behind his back, being taken out of an armored police vehicle and placed in an unmarked squad car.

An hour earlier, police said that progress in securing the building was slowed by the fact that the gunman brought "some bags" with him into the clinic and left several items outside, all of which needed to be checked for possible boobytraps or explosives.

No fatalities were reported by authorities. Five police officers were among those injured in the gunfire, said police spokeswoman Lieutenant Catherine Buckley.

There was no information provided on the nature of the injuries, or the condition of any of the victims.

Police swarmed the area around the building after an emergency call reporting shots fired at about 11:30 a.m. Mountain Time (1830 GMT), and officers ultimately confronted the suspect inside the building, Buckley said.

(Reporting by Daniel Wallis in Denver; Additional reporting by Dan Wallis in Denver, Dan Whitcomb in Los Angeles, Eric M. Johnson in Chicago, Laila Kearney in New York, Eric M. Johnson in Seattle and Andy Sullivan in Washington.; Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Steve Orlofsky and Tom Brown)