Man With Samurai​ Sword Arrested After SWAT Standoff At Carlsbad Motel

CARLSBAD, CA — A man with a samurai sword prompted a several-hour long SWAT standoff over the weekend at a Carlsbad motel.

Police responded at 9:41 a.m. Sunday to a report of a man brandishing a samurai sword at paramedics at the Carlsbad Village Inn at 1006 Carlsbad Village Drive, according to the Carlsbad Police Department. Paramedics were responding to an unrelated medical emergency at the motel.

Officers tried to make contact with the man, later identified as Eliot Rauk, 33, of Lomita through the door of his motel room, police said.

"Rauk yelled through the door, threatening to kill approaching officers and brandished a handgun, seen through the motel room window," the department said in a news release. "Areas of the motel were evacuated, a secure perimeter was established, and the Carlsbad SWAT team responded to the location."

The police department's Crisis Negotiation Team made cell phone contact and communicated with the suspect for several hours.

At 2:36 p.m., Rauk exited his room and was safely taken into custody, police said. After obtaining a search warrant, police found a samurai sword and a semiautomatic handgun in the room.

Rauk was taken to Tri-City Hospital for a medical evaluation, police said. He will be booked into Vista Jail on suspicion of making terrorist threats, unlawfully brandishing a weapon, and threats of violence against a police officer.