A six-hour stand-off between police and a 40-year-old man threatening to set alight a convenience store was brought to a peaceful end by a robot carrying a vape pen. Local media reports described a tense situation on Saturday morning in Novato, California that led to the closure of a Safeway store and McDonald's amid fears that the suspect may have been armed. The incident was caught on tape, including the moment the robot handed the man (identified by police as Juan Roman) a smartphone for communications. The assistant manager at the Circle K convenience store told KGO that the suspect "took a gas can from his pick up and poured it all over the store" following a payment dispute over the pumps. He then attempted to unsuccessfully set the floor mat ablaze before fleeing to the Safeway location in a pickup truck.