DESERT HOT SPRINGS (CNS) - A home invasion suspect tried to hide from police by diving into a hotel pool naked, scampered away from officers wearing only a towel, and then was arrested today.
Officers were dispatched at 9:15 a.m. to the 66400 block of San Juan Road in Desert Hot Springs for a report of a burglary in progress. They discovered that a man had assaulted the victim, stolen property from the home, and then fled, said Desert Hot Springs police Sgt. Christopher Saucier.
Officers and a California Highway Patrol helicopter scoured the area for the suspect, who was eventually found in the pool area of the nearby Miracle Springs Resort and Spa.``With the helicopter overhead, the suspect stripped naked, hid his clothing and jumped in the pool, trying to disguise his appearance,'' said Saucier.
The hotel's manager, Krystal Broadly, told City News Service that all of a sudden there were police cars everywhere and the suspect got out of the pool and ran away wearing only a towel. However, he didn't get far.
Christopher McCurdy, 48, of Desert Hot Springs was arrested in the hotel's parking lot and booked into the Riverside County Jail in Banning on suspicion of burglary, resisting arrest, violation of probation, among other counts of suspected crimes and a previous arrest warrant.
He was held without bail.