Sketches of two suspects who robbed a house in Corona (HANDOUT) |
CORONA, Calif. (KTLA) -- A mother and her son were pepper-sprayed when they walked in on a burglary in progress at their home in Corona, police said.
The incident happened on Feb 8 shortly after 6 p.m. Karima Deadrick, a single mom, returned home with her 12-year-old son Darnell.
The boy ran upstairs, and saw a man leaving his mother's bedroom.
"I realize now that he was going through my mom's drawers," Darnell told KTLA.
"I look up at the top of the stairs and there's a man standing there," Karima said, describing what happened next.
"He's spraying my son. My son's screaming."
According to police, the suspect ordered them to leave the house and pepper-sprayed Karima and Darnell directly in the face.
"He just said 'Get out of here! Get out of here!'" Darnell recalled.
With their eyes burning, the mother and son ran back downstairs, and Karima slipped and fell.
"The man just casually walks past me, and just sprays me in the face as I'm down on the ground," she said.
The suspect left through a side door, and then jumped an outside wall to escape.
A neighbor saw a second man run from the garage of the house.
The burglars took jewelry and the boy's wallet and cash.
The mother and child were treated by paramedics, but did not require hospitalization.
"I wouldn't wish this on anyone," Karima said. "It's terrorizing. It really is."
"That's a very chilling memory that doesn't go away," she added.
"We don't believe there's any connection to the family," Det. John Samano, of the Corona Police Dept. said.
"This was most likely a random act. I'm sure they were probably casing the neighborhood, saw that no one was home and took advantage of the situation."
The suspect who pepper-sprayed the child and mother is described as a thin Hispanic man of medium height.
He is in his mid 20s, with slicked back brown hair. He was last seen wearing a dark-colored jacket.
The second suspect is described as a black man about 17 to 22 years old. He is about 6 feet tall with short hair, and was last seen wearing dark clothing.
If you have any information, you're asked to call Detective Robert Gonzalez at 951-817-5837.
The incident happened on Feb 8 shortly after 6 p.m. Karima Deadrick, a single mom, returned home with her 12-year-old son Darnell.
The boy ran upstairs, and saw a man leaving his mother's bedroom.
"I realize now that he was going through my mom's drawers," Darnell told KTLA.
"I look up at the top of the stairs and there's a man standing there," Karima said, describing what happened next.
"He's spraying my son. My son's screaming."
According to police, the suspect ordered them to leave the house and pepper-sprayed Karima and Darnell directly in the face.
"He just said 'Get out of here! Get out of here!'" Darnell recalled.
With their eyes burning, the mother and son ran back downstairs, and Karima slipped and fell.
"The man just casually walks past me, and just sprays me in the face as I'm down on the ground," she said.
The suspect left through a side door, and then jumped an outside wall to escape.
A neighbor saw a second man run from the garage of the house.
The burglars took jewelry and the boy's wallet and cash.
The mother and child were treated by paramedics, but did not require hospitalization.
"I wouldn't wish this on anyone," Karima said. "It's terrorizing. It really is."
"That's a very chilling memory that doesn't go away," she added.
"We don't believe there's any connection to the family," Det. John Samano, of the Corona Police Dept. said.
"This was most likely a random act. I'm sure they were probably casing the neighborhood, saw that no one was home and took advantage of the situation."
The suspect who pepper-sprayed the child and mother is described as a thin Hispanic man of medium height.
He is in his mid 20s, with slicked back brown hair. He was last seen wearing a dark-colored jacket.
The second suspect is described as a black man about 17 to 22 years old. He is about 6 feet tall with short hair, and was last seen wearing dark clothing.
If you have any information, you're asked to call Detective Robert Gonzalez at 951-817-5837.
