Man in ‘Bunny’ Costume Arrested in Assault, Theft

A 225-pound man dressed as a “Samurai Bunny” for Halloween was arrested after he allegedly wielded his wooden sword and nearly severed the earlobe of a Diamond Bar man who asked him if he was too old to be trick-or-treating, police said Tuesday.

Michael Bautista, an unemployed La Verne resident, was arrested at 7:45 p.m. Monday on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and grand theft after twice striking a 35-year-old man with his sword and stealing candy from a youngster, La Verne Police Lt. Carl Brubaker said.

Bautista, who according to Brubaker admitted to both incidents, is being held on $25,000 bail.

The alleged assault occurred about 7:10 p.m. in the 3200 block of Thrush Street where Bautista, 21, carrying a wooden sword, had been trick-or-treating dressed in loose clothes and a stuffed bunny on his head, Brubaker said. The victim had been visiting his sister and was standing outside her house on Thrush Street.

As Bautista walked past the house, the man asked if the trick-or-treater wasn’t too old to be out asking for candy. At that point, the victim later told police, Bautista said, “So, what are you going to do about it?”

Bautista then allegedly struck the man twice across the head with his wooden sword. One blow tore a gash in the man’s earlobe so deep that it was nearly severed, police said. A few minutes later, Bautista allegedly ran up to a youngster and fought to get his candy. The youngster ran away.