A Hilmar man was the target of a SWAT deployment, but while law enforcement were busy surrounding his house, he was out roaming the streets of Turlock.

The Merced County Sheriff’s Department SWAT team was activated Saturday afternoon and deployed to the 17000 block of Williams Avenue in Hilmar for the report of an armed man who had barricaded himself in a residence, said sheriff spokesman Deputy Delray Shelton.

Around 4 p.m. the sheriff’s department received a report that Anthony Cabral, 23, had threatened his family members with a handgun, Shelton said.

Cabral had been arguing with family members when he pulled out a handgun and brandished it at them, Shelton said.

The family members were able to get out of the residence safely before deputies arrived.

The family told deputies Cabral had a non-medically treated mental stability illness and had made threats of suicide in the past.

The family and law enforcement believed Cabral had barricaded himself in the home with the handgun, along with additional weapons in the home, so the SWAT team was called out, Shelton said.

It turned out Cabral had left the Hilmar home prior to law enforcement’s arrival. Deputies were able to make contact with him via cell phone and learned he was in Turlock. He eventually agreed to return to the Hilmar residence and surrender to law enforcement.

Cabral was booked into the Merced County Jail on suspicion of making felony threats and brandishing a firearm.