What to Know
- The suspect is a Latino man in his mid-20s to early 30s, about 5 feet 7 to 5 feet 8, about 160 pounds.
- He wore a T-shirt and tan shorts during the break-in.
- Police released surveillance video of the intruder and asked if anyone sees the suspect to call detectives at (714) 245-8362.
A Santa Ana woman woke up Thursday morning to a burglar, who turned the break-in into a home invasion, strong-arm robbery-carjacking, police said.
The victim, in her 60s, was sleeping on a couch about 5 a.m. in her house in the 900 block of West Riviera Drive when the intruder's break-in roused her, Santa Ana police Cpl. Anthony Bertagna said.
"She's confronted by this man she does not know and tries to get away, but he strikes her with a chair, grabs her by the throat and says, 'Give me your (expletive) keys,'" Bertagna said.
When the woman handed over the car keys, the intruder ran out and initially unsuccessfully tried to get into a pickup truck in the home's driveway before turning to the vehicle the keys matched, Bertagna said.
The robber drove off with the vehicle but minutes later crashed into a center divider of the Santa Ana (5) Freeway at Main Street, ditched the stolen car and ran away, Bertagna said.
Police released surveillance video of the intruder and asked if anyone sees the suspect to call detectives at (714) 245-8362.
The suspect is a Latino man in his mid-20s to early 30s, about 5 feet 7 to 5 feet 8, about 160 pounds. He wore a T-shirt and tan shorts during the break-in.
