Charges: Robert Wood shot St. Paul officer with BB gun during attempted suicide by cop

Robert Wood faces attempted murder and first degree assault charges for allegedly shooting a cop in the face with a BB gun during a standoff last Friday afternoon in St. Paul.

According to the charges, following a meeting earlier that day, Wood's psychiatrist called police to warn them that Wood might attempt "suicide by cop." Wood's girlfriend was also worried he was planning to kill himself.

Following the psychiatrist's call, officers responded to Wood's residence at 43 Lyton Place, where they holed up behind vehicles after his girlfriend told them he had a BB gun. Eventually, Wood, 53, opened fire with a .25 caliber Benjamin Trail XL air rifle and at one point struck an officer just below his eye.

Later, Wood came out the front door of his residence without his gun and police sent a canine after him. Wood allegedly tried to stab the dog with a knife he hid behind his back, but he couldn't remove the weapon from its sheath in time and the dog escaped unharmed.

Finally, crisis negotiators were able to coax Wood into coming out of his residence, and he was arrested.

During a post-Miranda interview, Wood said the holidays are a particularly tough time for him and admitted he was trying to provoke officers into shooting and killing him.

"He admitted what he did was wrong," the complaint says. "Wood said he has tried to commit suicide too many times in the past to count."

During a media availability today, St. Paul Police Chief Tom Smith said that if the BB gun pellet would've struck the officer in a different spot, "We may be having a different type of press conference today -- a more tragic one."

At a hearing today, a judge ordered that Wood undergo a psychiatric evaluation. Meanwhile, the injured officer, Michael Talley, is expected to return to work in the coming weeks.

To read the criminal complaint for yourself -- warning, it contains some profane language -- click here.

:::: UPDATE ::::

This afternoon, Ramsey County authorities released this mock-up image of the weapon Wood allegedly used during last Friday's incident: