Naked man wielding Samurai sword arrested after standoff with Calif. police, report says

By: Crimesider Staff
Topics: Daily Blotter

File photo of a San Jose police cruiser

/ CBS San Francisco

(CBS/AP) SAN JOSE, Calif. - Police arrested a naked man wielding a large Samurai sword and recovered an assault rifle from his car after a three-hour standoff with San Jose police on New Year's Day, CBS San Francisco reports.

Coco Bennett, 29, was arrested on suspicion of brandishing a weapon and possession of an assault rifle, San Jose police spokesman Officer Albert Morales said. Police recovered an AR-15-type assault rifle, with a magazine and live ammunition, from Bennett's car during the standoff at the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority light, Morales said.

Police received a call at 8:05 a.m. Tuesday of a man armed with an assault rifle in front of a residence near San Jose, Morales said. The suspect was not at the residence when police arrived, but based on witness' descriptions, patrol officers spotted the man's vehicle near the VTA station.

The suspect drove into the station's parking lot, jumped out of his truck naked and brandished his sword at officers while shouting several times, "You're going to have to kill me," Morales said.

Police notified the department's Crisis Intervention Team, whose members attempted to talk the suspect into giving up for more than two hours, Morales said.

At 11 a.m., the suspect tried to escape while still carrying the sword, and attempted to scale a fence before falling down and dropping the weapon, CBS San Francisco reports. He was taken into custody and transported to a hospital for treatment for minor injuries, Morales said.

Officers closed the rail station, secured the immediate area and recovered the assault rifle, magazine and bullets from the pickup truck, Morales said. Police tried to determine the motivation behind the suspect's attack, and considered his state of mental health and whether drugs or alcohol were factors.

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