Man Dies in Hospital After Fight With Police : Law enforcement: He hit one officer and tried to bite another after crashing his van, then stopped breathing in patrol car. Tests find cocaine in his system.

A Northern California man who reportedly struck a police officer with a crucifix and tried to bite another officer died 23 hours after authorities forcibly handcuffed and subdued him, officials said Saturday.

Miguel Bustos, 37, of Ceres stopped breathing and suffered cardiac arrest shortly after he was taken into custody at 5:30 a.m. Friday and placed in a San Clemente Police Department patrol car, officials said. He was taken to Samaritan Medical Center-San Clemente, where he died at 4:24 a.m. Saturday. Authorities said cocaine was found in Bustos’ system.

An autopsy performed shortly after Bustos died has failed to determine the cause of death, said Deputy Coroner Cullen Ellingburgh of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department. Further tests are pending, he said.

San Clemente police officers and California Highway Patrol officers were at the scene when Bustos was taken into custody, but officials would not comment on the case. The CHP issued a written statement on the incident which referred to the cocaine finding. The statement did not indicate how much cocaine had been ingested.

“All we can say at this point is the Orange County district attorney’s office is investigating it,” said San Clemente police Sgt. Richard Downing. Prosecutors could not be reached for comment Saturday.

The incident began when Bustos was traveling south on the San Diego Freeway near El Camino Real and crashed the van he was driving, according to the CHP statement.

When CHP officers arrived, they found that Bustos had fled the scene, leaving behind his sister-in-law, Griseloa Perez, 20, also of Ceres, and her two children, ages 10 months and 2. Neither child was injured in the accident.

A few moments later, San Clemente police received reports of a man acting in a “bizarre” manner at the intersection of El Camino Real and Avenida Mendocino, according to the statement.

CHP and San Clemente officers arrived to find Bustos yelling, speaking incoherently and “frothing at the mouth,” the statement said.

Bustos was holding a crucifix when officers advised Bustos to calm down. At that time, the report stated, Bustos struck one officer in the face with the crucifix and tried to bite another as authorities attempted to arrest him.

“Mr. Bustos was subdued and arrested. He was handcuffed and placed in the San Clemente Police Department patrol car,” the statement said. “However, officers soon noticed that he was very quiet. Mr. Bustos was immediately checked and found to have stopped breathing and gone into cardiac arrest,” the statement said.