Man slashes own throat after being stopped by police
A man suspected of robbing an Anaheim bank slashed his throat with a box cutter Monday afternoon after being stopped by police in Irvine, authorities said.
Police received a call about a man in his 20s robbing the Washington Mutual branch at 555 N. Euclid St. at 12:36 p.m., said Anaheim police Sgt. Rick Martinez.
As officers responded, the man left the bank in a white beat-up sports car that was missing a front bumper.
A car matching the description was seen going south on Interstate 5 by an undercover Anaheim detective, Martinez said. The detective called for backup, and officers from a few different agencies responded.
As the car approached Irvine, officers tried to stop it. The suspect pulled off the freeway at Culver Drive, and the car came to a stop.
The man then apparently used a box cutter to slash both sides of his neck, Martinez said. He was rushed to a hospital, bleeding profusely, Martinez said.
The man underwent surgery and is expected to survive, Martinez said. He is in police custody at the hospital, which Martinez declined to name. Police identified the man as Benjamin Nolasco, 23, of Oceanside.
Cash was found on the front seat of the car, but police did not find a weapon inside the vehicle, Martinez said. Nolasco had apparently simulated a weapon during the robbery, Martinez said.
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