During a demonstration of a Tibetan sand painting ceremony, Draper leapt up on the service desk in the Fiction section brandishing a M1911 pistol and claiming to have a bomb.
Several staff stayed on-site to provide police with floor plans and operating the telephone, security and power lines according to the wishes of the SWAT teams.
For this reason, Lt. Prescott hesitated to use force, and the incident lasted more than six hours, during which Draper made demands for cash, gold and platinum bullion, back-pay for prior military service, and a full presidential pardon from President Bill Clinton.
He drew his pistol and, while shouting at the other hostages to get on the floor, fired five times at Draper while SWAT members crashed through the glass walls of the conference room.
The Salt Lake City Police Department's bomb squad deemed it too volatile to move, and it was detonated inside the conference room.