phone case
CBS Los Angeles

Handgun-Shaped Cell Phone Case Leads to Police Standoff in California

A handgun-shaped cell phone case caused a bizarre four-hour standoff in California.

A California man who is an exceptionally heavy sleeper found himself in one of the most bizarre police standoffs we've ever seen, all because of his handgun-shaped cellphone case.

Fernando Flores was sleeping in his car in the parking lot for an Albertsons market and Toys 'R' Us in Alhambra. That's when someone apparently spotted the case on the seat next to him.

For the next four hours, the area was in lock down as Flores snored away in the front seat, completely unaware of what was going on outside as helicopters and swat teams staged outside.

"I'm a heavy sleeper," Flores told reporters. "what can I say?"

When Flores finally woke up, he was surprised to see heavily armed officers surrounding him. He surrendered and was questioned. It was only then that the authorities realized the entire incident was one strange false alarm.

No charges were filed against Flores because there was no crime committed.

This type of false alarm is exactly what officials in Minnesota worried could happen when they started talking about banning this type of case back in July.

A similar false alarm incident for this type of phone case was also reported in Essex, England back in July. In this photo posted by the Essex Police after that incident, it's easy to see why authorities aren't fans of this kind of phone case.

Flores did wisely agree to go with the advice of police to get rid of the case. "I just saw it online," he told reporters. "I liked it. It was cheap. I got it. You know, I never thought it could cause all this."

NEXT: A QUICK PRIMER ON CHANGES TO CALIFORNIA'S GUN LAWS IN 2017