Man brandishing samurai-style sword barricades inside Carlsbad motel
By Gina Yarbrough
Carlsbad, CA–A man suspected of brandishing a samurai-style sword barricaded himself inside a motel room in Carlsbad on Sunday, authorities said.
Carlsbad police officers responded to the Carlsbad Village Inn regarding a report around 9:41 a.m. of a man brandishing a sword at paramedics, who were responding to an unrelated medical aid call at the motel.
When officers arrived at the scene, they approached the man’s room and attempted to make contact with him. The man, later identified as 33-year-old Eliot Rauk of Lomita, CA, yelled through the door, threatening to kill approaching officers and brandishing a handgun.
As a safety precaution, guests of the motel near the area were evacuated, and officers secured a perimeter around Rauk’s room. The Carlsbad SWAT team was called to the scene.
The Carlsbad Police Department’s Crisis Negotiation Team made contact with Rauk by cell phone for several hours.
At 2:36 p.m., Rauk exited his room and was safely taken into custody. Officers used a search warrant to recover a semi-automatic handgun and the samurai sword from the room.
Rauk was transported to Tri-City Hospital for a medical evaluation and will be booked into Vista Jail for charges of making terrorist threats, unlawfully brandishing a weapon and threats of violence against a police officer.
