A Texas SWAT team deployed a bomb squad robot to subdue a barricaded gunman in a tense standoff that ended with the suspect pinned to the ground by the very robot he tried to outmaneuver.
Felix Delarosa, 39, barricaded himself inside a Days Inn motel room in Lubbock on Wednesday morning after firing shots at police officers, KBCD 11 reported.
The standoff escalated quickly when Delarosa refused to surrender peacefully, despite negotiators’ repeated attempts to defuse the situation.
When he began firing at officers again, the Lubbock County Sheriff’s Office decided to strike back with a modern twist—sending in a police robot.
Delarosa attempted to outwit the tech-savvy cop-on-wheels. Armed with desperation and a sheet, the suspect tossed the fabric over the robot, hoping to block its view and prevent the machine from releasing tear gas into his barricaded room.
But the robot, operated remotely, was unfazed. It dodged the bullet—literally—and continued its mission to bring the standoff to a close.
The robot, shaking off the sheet, rolled closer to the broken window of Delarosa’s room.
Despite the suspect’s attempt to push the machine away, the robot stayed its course, deploying tear gas to smoke him out.
As the gas filled the room, Delarosa, visibly disoriented, crawled out of the shattered window.
The robot then rolled on top of Delarosa, pinning him to the ground. SWAT officers swiftly moved in, bringing an end to the nearly two-hour standoff.
Delarosa was taken into custody and transported to University Medical Center for treatment before being booked into the Lubbock County Detention Center on charges of aggravated assault against a public servant.
His bond is set at $403,500.
Watch the video obtained by KCBD 11: