UPDATE: Salinas restaurant owner restrains burglar until police arrive
UPDATE 12/6/16 7:12 AM: The man arrested for burglary and other charges has been identified as 27-year-old James Armijo. After breaking into China Garden restaurant, he stole cash and merchandise, including seven meat cleavers, food and a laptop computer. He was interrupted by the business owner, who responded to an alarm at the building. The owner confronted Armijo and tried to stop him. The two fought briefly before Armijo broke away and ran Taco Bell, where the owner struggled with him once again. Armijo punched the business owner at one point, but neither man was injured in the incident. No firearm was found, but Armijo had tools used to break into the business. He was booked on charges including burglary, robbery, vandalism, possession of burglary tools and probation violation
PREVIOUS STORY: According to the Owners of China Garden in Salinas, they received a call from the alarm company around 1:30 a.m.
After they realized their surveillance cameras weren’t working, they knew something was wrong.
The son of the owner went to check it out. When he arrived, he saw a man leaving the restaurant. He asked the suspect to stop, however the man began to run. Against his better judgment, he said he jumped on the suspect and held him down until Salinas officers arrived.
The young hero and mom both admit that what he did was brave, but also ill-advised. SPD recommends you never chase a suspect.