A San Mateo apartment complex briefly turned into a police search zone yesterday as officers rolled out drones and a K-9 to track down an assault suspect, sealing off the La Selva at Casa de Campo area and moving nearby residents out of harm’s way. After the search, medics evaluated the suspect at the scene before he was taken to jail.
Police: Drones and K-9 Led Search
According to a Facebook post by the San Mateo Police Department, officers set up a large perimeter around the front and back of the building before sending drones overhead and deploying K-9 Franko to clear the complex. The department says K-9 Franko eventually tracked the assault suspect to an apartment that did not belong to him, where officers moved in and took the man into custody on numerous charges. Medics checked the suspect at the scene, the post added, before he was transported to the county jail.
Drone and K-9 Procedures
The department’s Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems policy allows sUAS deployments for critical incidents, including situations with barricaded suspects and efforts to catch violent fleeing suspects, and San Mateo uses a "Drone as a First Responder" concept with FAA-certified operators. Per the City of San Mateo, all drone flights must follow FAA rules along with internal department guidelines. San Mateo has also recently added specialized K-9 capabilities, including an electronic-detection dog to support searches and investigations, according to SFGATE.
Neighbors Moved To Safety
While the search unfolded, police asked the public for patience with evacuations and street closures and said officers went door to door attempting to reach neighbors and move them to safety, according to the post. The update closed with the department’s motto, protect with honor serve with pride, but otherwise kept operational details tight, with no additional information on tactics revealed, according to the San Mateo Police Department.
Local Context
The La Selva Street and Casa de Campo Drive corridor is no stranger to police activity. Earlier this year, a San Mateo resident was arrested on suspicion of felony DUI after a New Year’s Eve collision at what Hoodline described. That recent history, paired with the department’s drone and K-9 policies, helps explain why officers sometimes bring out higher-tech tools and four-legged partners when tackling complex building searches in the area.
