A man armed with a knife was arrested on suspicion of residential burglary and robbery after he entered a home while the family was still inside, authorities said Sunday.
The crime occurred around 6:30 p.m. Saturday in the 1200 block of North Santa Fe Avenue in Vista, according to Sgt. Austin Smith of the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.
“Deputies from the Vista station responded to a call of two men burglarizing a home while the family was inside,” Smith said. “One of the men entered the garage and began stealing items, while the other acted as a lookout.”
A neighbor noticed what was happening and yelled at the lookout, the sergeant said. Upon hearing the commotion, the victim walked into the garage and interrupted the burglar, who pulled a knife out of his pocket and told the victim not to call the police, then ran. Both suspects fled the area on foot.
A sheriff’s department K-9 and a helicopter located two men in the area, Smith said. They were in separate locations at the time they were detained.
The victim identified 29-year-old Erik Dan Garcia as the man who was allegedly inside the garage. The other man detained was not positively identified and was released at the scene.
Deputies located the stolen items a short distance from the home, and Garcia was arrested and booked into the Vista Detention Facility. He was scheduled to be arraigned Thursday on two felony charges.
His bail was set at $100,000.
The case remained under investigation.
City News Service contributed to this article.