Standoff Ends With Armed Man’s Arrest

Authorities were trying to determine Tuesday why an unemployed welder armed with a semiautomatic handgun barricaded himself and his sister-in-law in the garage of his Anaheim apartment for nearly nine hours.

Police said the standoff, which prompted the evacuation of 75 residents, began late Monday after a 911 report that Mario Marrufo, 46, had held a gun to his wife’s stomach, then threatened to take his own life by blowing up their apartment with a propane tank.

The wife broke free and fled to a neighbor’s house, police said. Fifteen minutes later, she returned to the apartment and called police.

Marrufo then locked himself and his sister-in-law inside the garage, which was full of tires, welding equipment, an old car and boxes of personal effects, officials said.

“He apparently flipped when he found out his wife was pregnant with their fifth baby,” said Sgt. Joe Vargas, public information officer for the Anaheim Police Department. “But we really don’t understand what would motivate the sister-in-law to be in the garage with him. All we can say is she really delayed and obstructed officers trying to defuse the situation.”

Dozens of SWAT officers, hostage negotiators and firefighters responded to the situation at the apartment complex, which is in the 100 block of Western Avenue.

Marrufo and sister-in-law Lisa Cortez, 37, of Norwalk surrendered just after 6 a.m. Tuesday.

Marrufo was arrested on suspicion of felony aggravated assault. His bail was set at $50,000. Cortez was arrested on suspicion of obstruction of justice, a misdemeanor. Her bail was set at $500. Both were being held Tuesday at the Anaheim Detention Center.

Police said Marrufo’s wife and the couple’s four children were not injured in the standoff.