Man Arrested After Coffeehouse Scuffle

Huntington Beach police arrested a 63-year-old Moreno Valley man Saturday after he allegedly threatened to slash some people next to a coffeehouse on Pacific Coast Highway, police said.

While officers were investigating the 9:43 a.m. incident, they saw the suspect riding by in the back seat of a taxi, said Huntington Beach Police Sgt. Richard Butcher.

“The officers stopped the taxi and then took the suspect into custody,” Butcher said.

Donald Charles Roeser was arrested on suspicion of vehicle burglary, assault with a deadly weapon and possession of stolen property--a Chevrolet Suburban that had been reported stolen in San Diego in July, he said.

Police might not have caught the suspect, Butcher said, without the help of some people who surrounded him outside Java Jungle as he allegedly tried to break into a car. They tried to stall him, but he allegedly threatened the group with a knife, Butcher said. He dropped the weapon when one witness tackled him, he said.

The suspect then tried to drive off in a Chevrolet Suburban, but one of the witnesses picked up the knife and slashed the Suburban’s left rear tire, Butcher said. About the same time, the suspect allegedly rammed another parked car, crumpling the driver-side door of the Suburban.

The stolen Suburban, dented and with a flat tire, was found abandoned a few blocks away. While police were investigating, they spotted the suspect in the cab.