FRESNO, Calif. - A robot has broken out windows and a SWAT team tossed a flash-bang grenade into a Fresno residential motel room in a futile attempt to arrest a suspected murderer.
Police evacuated the Sahara Lodge in central Fresno for about 10 hours early Saturday before finding the room empty.
Capt. Mike Reid says they were searching for 27-year-old Ralph Navarro. He is suspected of killing a man earlier this month.
Police used the robot to break out windows in the second-floor room. They used a remote camera to peer inside, then used a grenade designed to distract and immobilize suspects.
The motel's residents were first moved to the motel office, then sheltered in a city bus parked nearby.
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Information from: The Fresno Bee