BCSO Sgt. Chris Coram said officers working together to gather information and use it in their negotiations with Sandvig was critical to the peaceful outcome.

CALLAWAY — Investigators attribute a combination of timely information and group effort to the peaceful end of an armed standoff that started out with a man opening fire on Bay County deputies.

Robert Leroy Sandvig III, 35, appeared in court Wednesday after peacefully surrendering himself the previous day. What started as a domestic situation about 4 p.m. Tuesday at his 913 Plantation Drive home escalated into Sandvig allegedly firing shots at officers. Sandvig then barricaded himself in a bedroom of the home with a cache of firearms and ammunition for about four hours until negotiators were able to talk him out without any injuries being sustained on either side, BCSO reported.

Sandvig has been charged with four counts of aggravated assault on officers and discharging a firearm in a residential area. He also had a history of arrests and was on probation in connection with drug charges.

He is being held without bond and declined to comment from the Bay County Jail.

BCSO Sgt. Chris Coram, who supervises deputies on the east side of Bay County and was working with SWAT at the time, said officers working together to gather information and use it in their negotiations with Sandvig was critical to the outcome. He said after establishing a line of communication with Sandvig, officers were able understand his rationale.

“In this type of dynamic situation, you have a lot to consider and a lot of elements come into play,” Coram said. “It was a testament to what BCSO strives for. We were fortunate to have a quick response and able to put together the pieces of the puzzle to bring this to a peaceful resolution.”

Coram said the standoff went as well as could be expected, given that Sandvig had undergone a mental episode before shooting at police and barricading himself with two shotguns, two firearms and a surplus of ammunition.

BCSO initially received the call to the house as a report of a “mentally deranged individual,” officers reported. Sandvig’s mother — who was not named in the report — reported he had threatened to harm her dog and himself. After officers arrived, they could hear what sounded like a shotgun being loaded before it discharged within the house, officers reported.

“After the shot was heard, (Sandvig) began advising the deputies on scene that he would harm them if they attempted to disarm him” officers wrote. Sandvig “then proceedeed to advise deputies the caliber of weapons he had, and the body parts that he would be aiming for.”

Sandvig later fired four more shots at deputies from his bedroom window. An intense four-hour negotiation ensued, with officers gathering information from Sandvig’s relatives to relate to the gunman’s state of mind. Eventually, he surrendered without another shot being fired.

Coram said all of the officers involved were glad for that.

“It gives you an appreciation for being able to go home at the end of the day,” Coram said. “Most of these guys are husbands and fathers, and some called their families and cried afterward. Once you get away from a situation like that, the body reacts in strange ways. But that you get to go home, that feels good.”