Placentia : Dining Couple Hurt as Car Hits Restaurant

A car ran off the road and into a wall of a Placentia restaurant about 12:45 p.m. Thursday, causing minor injuries to one couple who were eating, police reported.

The couple, who were not identified, were treated at the scene for small cuts, officers reported. The car driver, Rafael Saucedo, 29, of Placentia was arrested on suspicion of felony drunk driving, said Placentia Police Lt. Chuck Babcock.

“The driver had a bump on his head after the accident, and we took him to Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Anaheim,” Babcock said. The injury was described as minor.

Babcock said Saucedo ran from the scene after his car plowed partially into the dining area of Angel’s Restaurant, at the corner of Orangethorpe and Lakeview avenues. “We don’t know if he was trying to flee the scene or whether he was frightened by all the people,” Babcock said.

Several people chased Saucedo and caught him about a block away. They held him until police arrived.

The car driven by Saucedo was eastbound on Orangethorpe when it veered into the westbound lane near Lakeview Avenue, Babock said. He said the car jumped a curb, sheered off a guy wire to a power line, and then crashed into the wall of the restaurant.