'Suicidal' security robot 'drowned itself' at Washington office

July 18 (UPI) -- Officials at a Washington, D.C., office building patrolled by a security robot they are investigating after workers reported the robot "drowned itself."

MRP Realty announced last week there was a "new sheriff in town," namely a K5 security robot developed by Silicon Valley startup Knightscope, but Bilal Farooqui, a worker at the office complex, tweeted a photo Monday revealing the mechanical guard had met with a watery end.

"Our D.C. office building got a security robot. It drowned itself," Farooqui wrote alongside an image of the robot horizontal inside a fountain. "We were promised flying cars, instead we got suicidal robots."

MRP Realty said the security robot is part of a pilot program that is still being fine-tuned.

"These incidents show us where improvements are needed, which may then be deployed to contribute to the ongoing security of our tenants and residents," a spokesman told CNET.com.

The spokesman said officials are "digging in to find out" what happened to the robot.

Stacy Dean Stephens, vice president of marketing and sales at Knightscope, said the robot's demise was "an isolated incident" that is under investigation.

"No people were harmed or involved in any way," he said.

The company said a new K5 is being sent to MRP Realty to replace its drowned cohort.