Man held after attack with a pipe at an H.B. hotel

A man was arrested early Monday after swinging a metal pipe at a Huntington Beach hotel employee Sunday night, authorities said.

Carlos Mercado, 26, of Los Angeles faces charges of assault with a deadly weapon and resisting or obstructing a police officer, said Jennifer Marlatt, public information officer for the Huntington Beach Police Department.

Officers responded to the Comfort Suites at 16301 Beach Boulevard regarding an assault at 9:53 p.m. after a maintenance worker at the hotel told police a guest acting “in a bizarre manner” approached and swung a pipe at him, Marlatt said.

The man fled but was reported to have returned to the hotel parking lot around 2 a.m.

Police attempted to arrest the man, but he physically resisted and tried to kick officers once he was handcuffed, Marlatt said.

She said the man, identified as Mercado, was restrained to a gurney and taken to a hospital.

“By transporting [him] on a gurney, he can be immobilized with restraints,” Marlatt said. “By being in the back of a patrol car, he can still move around and cause injury.”

Marlatt said Mercado appeared to be under the influence of drugs and would be booked into the Orange County Jail after getting medical clearance.