Shots Fired Near Police; 3 Arrested After Chase

Three men were arrested after a chase Thursday when one of them allegedly shot at another car--unaware that a group of undercover officers were nearby on an unrelated stakeout, police said.

About 3:30 p.m., the detectives--from various county police agencies--were staking out a location near McFadden Avenue and Maxine Street in Santa Ana for an undisclosed reason, said Santa Ana Police Sgt. Gary Adams.

The officers noticed three cars approaching when someone opened fire at the lead car, Adams said.

The officers chased the two trailing cars east on McFadden, south on Euclid and west on Edinger into Fountain Valley, Adams said.

The alleged gunmen then turned north on Los Coches Street and west on Sunn Circle into a dead end, where police stopped one of the cars, Adams said.

One of the suspects threw a semiautomatic pistol out the window to the sidewalk, Adams said.

The second car sped in the opposite direction down Sunn, where an officer fired at it, Adams said.

That car struck an unmarked police car and careened out of control into a tree across the street, Adams said.

Three men from the two cars were arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, police said. Their names were not available. No one was injured.

The car that was being shot at disappeared, and police have been unable to find its occupants, Adams said.