Santa Ana standoff: Suspect in custody after allegedly pistol-whipping Pizza Hut delivery driver

SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) -- An armed suspect was taken into custody Wednesday following an hourslong standoff after he allegedly pistol-whipped a Pizza Hut delivery driver in an attempted robbery and carjacking.

The incident occurred at about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday after a man demanded money from a Pizza Hut delivery driver and pistol-whipped him, said Anthony Bertagna of the Santa Ana Police Department.

When police responded, the suspect led officers on a foot chase and entered the home of a family he had no connection to in the 3200 block of South Thornton Street, police said.

The family inside the home managed to get out. Police were in the area for hours attempting to get the suspect to surrender.

For about an hour, SWAT officers shot tear gas into the home, sending smoke billowing from a second-story window.

Police said it was their K-9, sent in nearly three hours later, that ultimately found the man hiding in a small space. He was bitten by the dog and taken away by ambulance.

SWAT officers took the suspect into custody around 7 a.m. Wednesday.

Santa Ana police said the man, identified as Ralph Marin from Anaheim, will be facing multiple felony charges.

"We know he had a gun," said Santa Ana PD Cpl. Anthony Bertagna. "He breaks into a house, people he doesn't even know..."

Police said Marin is the kind of suspect who had no regard for the homeowners and neighbors living there.

"They can't go to their house, they need to go to work. They get frustrated, obviously they get frustrated with us because we are not moving fast enough, in their eyes, but when you're dealing with an armed barricaded suspect, it's all about safety," Bertagna said.

The damage done to the home was obvious as police remained on scene to further investigate and locate the suspect's weapon.