California deputies used a drone equipped with a magnet to pull a knife from the hand of a wanted parolee during a standoff, a tactic the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office says may have been a first-of-its-kind use of the technology.
The sheriff’s office released video this week showing the incident involving Austin Carter, 30, a registered sex offender and parolee-at-large who authorities said had barricaded himself inside a Sacramento County home.
In a nationwide first, a drone was successfully used to disarm an armed suspect, helping bring the incident to a safe resolution.
Sacramento Sheriff’s Special Enforcement Detail (SWAT) had the residence surrounded. The known felon and Parolee-At-Large was seen earlier with a… pic.twitter.com/ZLiU5tEZxw
— Sacramento Sheriff (@sacsheriff) June 22, 2026
According to the sheriff’s office, SWAT deputies surrounded the residence after Carter ran inside and hid in a garage. Negotiators repeatedly attempted to contact him, but Carter did not respond.
Deputies then deployed a drone into the garage, where they found Carter lying motionless with a knife in his hand. Officials said the suspect was unresponsive, likely due to drug use.
“They realized, oh, he’s not moving, he’s unconscious, but he’s still armed with a knife. He still had it actively in his hand,” Tom Lee, a drone pilot and deputy with the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, said. “We determined with the drones that he was still alive. He was still breathing. And the aspect of going in there with a deputy seemed too dangerous.”
Deputies then improvised a solution by attaching a powerful magnet to a small quadcopter drone.
“One of our SWAT guys mentioned, hey, can we try throwing a magnet on the drone to see if it would work? And they grabbed one of their magnets they had from the vehicle, and we attached it to the drone. And I was able to get in there and fly and attach it to the knife and get it out of there,” Lee said.
As seen in the video, the drone attached a magnet to the knife, pulled it free from Carter’s hand and carried it outside. After the knife was removed, deputies deployed a K-9 and safely took Carter into custody. No personnel were injured.
The sheriff’s office described the operation as a possible “nationwide first” and praised the drone pilot’s actions as an example of using technology to reduce risks during dangerous encounters.
The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office also deployed Buster, its new robotic K-9 platform, during the operation. Video released by the agency showed the robot entering the suspect’s residence as deputies worked to locate and apprehend Carter.
Meet 30-year-old Austin Carter, a rapist, registered sex offender, and parolee-at-large with a violent criminal history and prior barricaded suspect incidents. Unbeknownst to deputies on scene, once he knew the the Special Enforcement Detail (SWAT) was on scene, he consumed all… pic.twitter.com/U7brpyly3G
— Sacramento Sheriff (@sacsheriff) June 24, 2026
“This operation showcases how technology, training, and innovation can come together to resolve a dangerous incident safely,” the sheriff’s office said.
Meanwhile, following his arrest, Carter was taken to a local hospital for evaluation before being booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail. He is being held without bail on multiple felony charges, including a parole violation.
