Nipomo shooting suspect arrested in Arroyo Grande

Correction: An earlier version of this story said the standoff occurred last week. It occurred on Feb. 19.

An attempted murder suspect, who was subject behind a failed daylong standoff at a Paso Robles motel on Feb. 19, was arrested by sheriff’s deputies in Arroyo Grande on Monday evening.

Richard Anthony Rodriguez, a 30-year-old Nipomo resident, was arrested after deputies stopped a vehicle thought to be associated with him at Cornwall Avenue and North Alpine Street at 6:25 p.m., according to a press release from the Sheriff’s Office. Rodriguez was one of two people inside the car and was arrested without incident.

Authorities had been looking for Rodriguez since Feb. 17, when he allegedly fired a shot at his ex-girlfriend after pulling up alongside her car on a Nipomo street. She wasn’t hurt, and Rodriguez fled. Two days later his car was seen in the Motel 6 parking lot in Paso Robles.

Paso Robles police found Rodriguez’s 1997 GMC Yukon parked outside the motel on Black Oak Road and alerted the Sheriff’s Office of the situation about 3:17 a.m. on Feb. 19. Paso Robles officers positively identified Rodriguez, 30, in the room, Cipolla said. He did not know how the officers identified Rodriguez.

When sheriff’s deputies arrived about 4 a.m., they cordoned off the Motel 6 and closed Black Oak Road to traffic. A SWAT team also went to the scene, and authorities used a loudspeaker over the course of the day to urge Rodriguez to come out. Finally, in midafternoon, officials broke down the door and sent in the robot equipped with a camera, Cipolla said.

Officers have no idea how Rodriguez slipped away, but said investigators believe he may have gotten away in the 45 minutes that elapsed between the time Paso Robles police arrived at 3:17 a.m. and when sheriff’s deputies came to the scene about 4 a.m.

This story was originally published March 1, 2016 at 4:42 AM with the headline "Nipomo shooting suspect arrested in Arroyo Grande."