‘Fluke’ Sparks Bizarre End to Kidnapping

What started out as the brazen kidnapping of a Santa Ana contractor known to carry large sums of cash ended with a wild police pursuit through Long Beach during which one of the suspects, a 14-year-old gang member, fired dozens of shots at officers with an AK-47 rifle, authorities said Thursday.

The two alleged kidnappers were arrested, and the victim was found unharmed--but not before a day of negotiations over ransom demands, an evening chase punctuated by gunfire and what police described as unbelievable good fortune.

“It was a fluke,” said Santa Ana Police Sgt. Raul Luna, explaining how officers eventually caught up

with the suspects. “We were very lucky.”

The situation began early Tuesday morning, when a 34-year-old Santa Ana man who police described as a carpeting contractor was abducted from a driveway near his home. The assailants threw the victim into a car while firing at occupants of another car parked nearby, police said. The name of the victim was not released, Luna said, out of concern for his safety.

Authorities said the victim was known in the neighborhood to carry large sums of money. The kidnappers called his family and demanded a ransom after they discovered he didn’t have any money on him, Luna said.

The family immediately notified police, who began negotiations.

“It was getting complicated, because they were changing dollar figures and locations several times to see if they were being followed,” said Luna, adding that the ransom demands at one point reached $100,000.

The kidnappers insisted that any ransom exchange occur in the Long Beach-Seal Beach area, but the time was not finalized. In preparation, police stationed officers in unmarked cars in the area.

Before an exchange time was set, officers in an unmarked car pulled up next to a blue 1985 Oldsmobile. The officers and the car’s occupants got into what Luna described as a staring match.

“The officers followed them because they looked suspicious and they had a hunch,” Luna said. “They were kind of ‘mad-dogging’ each other.”

Suddenly, as the police pulled behind the car, the 14-year-old passenger allegedly opened fire through the back window with a high-powered rifle. That began a three-mile pursuit through the streets of Seal Beach, Long Beach and Lakewood.

“The officers were shocked that the windows just blew up,” Luna said, adding that one bullet lodged in a cage rack between the two officers.

Six police cars followed the suspects, who fired more than 40 bullets at officers, Luna said. The bullets struck hoods, bumpers and grills on patrol cars and the side of a passing motorist’s car. Another motorist’s vehicle was sideswiped.

The chase ended when the suspects’ car jumped a curb at a gas station and struck a fence at Los Coyotes Diagonal at Stevely Avenue.

The site happened to be where about 20 Los Angeles County and Long Beach police officers were training with their dogs, Luna said.

A gun battle erupted between pursuing officers and the two suspects, who eventually ran into a nearby residential area. Police found the kidnapped contractor lying in the back seat of the car. Authorities also discovered shell casings, an AK-47 with a banana clip, an automatic pistol and a high-powered revolver in the car.

“They were very serious, and they were very ready to go to battle with anyone in their way,” Luna said.

Police set up a 10-square-block perimeter and had the K-9 units help in the search. The 14-year-old, whose name was not released because of his age, surrendered in front of a house.

Luna said the boy is a member of a Los Angeles street gang and has an extensive criminal history.

Juan Diego Perez, 27, of Los Angeles was found a short time later, hidden between houses.

Both suspects face several charges, including attempted murder of a police officer, kidnapping, and hit and run.

“This was the act of a seasoned criminal,” Luna said. “It was shocking to see a 14-year-old involved in this type of hard-core behavior.”

Police were searching for more suspects.