Burrito Beef: Taco Bell price hike incites 3-hour standoff, gunfire with Texas police

By: Naimah Jabali-Nash
Topics: Daily Blotter

AP Graphic

(CBS/KENS/AP) SAN ANTONIO - Tear gas, a gun fight with police, and a three-hour standoff may sound like a scene from the latest summer blockbuster, but it was a far from fiction Sunday when a San Antonio man apparently became enraged after he found out the price of Taco Bell's Beefy Crunch Burrito had gone from 99 cents to a whopping $1.49 each.

Brian Tillerson, a manager at the Taco Bell/KFC restaurant, told the San Antonio Express-News that the man was angry of the 50 cent inflation after ordering seven burritos from the establishment.

"They did use to be 99 cents, but that was just a promotion," Tillerson told the San Antonio Express News. "He pointed a gun at me, and he fired it. I leaned to the side and there was a pop but nothing happened."

The suspect, whose name has not been released, only had an air gun at that time but later fired an assault rifle at officers before barricading himself into a Roadway Inn hotel room, according to CBS affiliate KENS.

After a three-hour standoff, San Antonio police Sgt. Chris Benavides says officers used tear gas to force the man from the hotel room.

The man is charged with three counts of attempted capital murder.

No one was hurt during the incident.

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by Wildwood1966 March 22, 2011 2:40 PM EDT: said it before - you can't make this stuff up! 7????? how many can one person eat ???; Reply to this comment


by licht1 March 22, 2011 12:13 AM EDT: Was the Burrito Bandit subdued through the use of jalapeño pepper gas?

See: http://******/eFkOIO; Reply to this comment


by rwsmith29456 March 21, 2011 11:04 PM EDT: Um, how about $1.25?????; Reply to this comment


by mad123max March 21, 2011 10:24 PM EDT: And to top it all off, the cops ate his food.; Reply to this comment

by Doctor_Bones March 21, 2011 9:25 PM EDT

Truth is stranger than fiction. It's not, but, it is kinda of funny though. I'll bet he was an illegal, or a green card holder. At least the San Antonio police department handled this situation very well, if that had occurred in my area the police would have shot the place to bits within the fist ten minutes, and killed at least one innocent bystander.

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by formrusmcsgt March 21, 2011 10:17 PM EDT: I'd say more likely a neo....


by Doctor_Bones March 21, 2011 10:21 PM EDT: I doubt a neo....they don't go ballistic over Taco bell burrito prices. They probably understand how price promotions work.


by equiqueca March 22, 2011 6:39 PM EDT: This was almost certainly a white American. Or at least almost certainly fits the profile of an ignorant white dude having a bad day because his woman cheated on him with an illegal or green card holder. LOL


by Imthaid2 March 21, 2011 8:10 PM EDT: This is what happens when the tea parties are over.; Reply to this comment


by m0u5y March 21, 2011 7:20 PM EDT: Talk about sense of entitlement. He should be thanking Taco Bell for indirectly trying to push people to cook at home and eat healthy food. I can feed two adults for a month on 100 dollars just by cooking. If I were to buy a 99 cents burrito three times a day for a month it would cost me around 90 dollars for ONE. It doesn't take much to cook a balanced meal. My mother did it while working full time and still had time to do all the dishes and she had to work 6 days a week. I used to eat Taco Bell every few months or so, but since I've been laid off I've been cooking our own meals and have never felt better. I don't even spend half the day on the toilet after my meals.; Reply to this comment


by kenhamlett March 21, 2011 4:09 PM EDT: Except for the standoff related content, this article would suggest the man would come out cheaper buying a cow, a gun and a head of lettuce then build his burrito from scratch.; Reply to this comment