Locked out of his apartment, California man ends up surrounded by police with guns drawn

A California man locked himself out of his apartment. While he waited for a locksmith to let him in, police officers swooped in with guns drawn, KCBS-TV reported.

The man, Ben Tang of Burbank, was suspected of attempted burglary after someone had called 911 on him.

"I walked out and I looked to my left and I saw a high-powered rifle pointing at me," Tang told KCBS. "And I'm like 'What is going on?'"

What happened?

Tang had locked himself out of his Burbank apartment Friday, so he called a locksmith to let him back inside.

While the locksmith was working, a neighbor apparently called 911 and reported a possible burglary in progress, according to Burbank police.

Tang and the locksmith were still outside the apartment when multiple police cars pulled up, and at least six officers surrounded the two with handguns and rifles pointed at them, ordering them to put their hands up.

"They said 'Put your hands up, put your hands up,'" Tang said to KCBS. "And all of a sudden I see, I don't know, like 10-15 cops, surrounding my whole house."

The incident was recorded by a witness with a cellphone.

Tang and the locksmith both complied with the officers, although Tang said they would not let him explain himself.

"They told me to walk back slowly and that's when I got handcuffed," Tang said. "I was trying to explain my situation and they wouldn't let me talk."

They were both released without charges once it was determined that Tang was the resident of the home.

No hard feelings

Tang said that despite the frightening situation, he does not hold a grudge against the neighbor who called the police.

"I appreciate my neighbors for watching out," Tang said. "But yeah, it could have been handled a different way, to be honest."

A statement on social media by the Burbank Police Department thanked the person who reported the situation to the police, and said that the officers followed protocol in their response.