By Greg Welter
Chico Enterprise-Record
CHICO, Calif. — A man who allegedly battered two people inside a trailer Tuesday night then advanced on Chico police officers as he carried a large knife in his back pocket, was stopped with a Taser stun gun and arrested.
Police were called to a mobile home park at to investigate reports that Juan Lopez, 38, had roughed up two people who were trying to keep him from allegedly assaulting his wife.
On arrival officers found Lopez breaking out windows in a trailer near one occupied by his estranged wife and young child.
She had fled there, with the child, and locked doors and windows to keep Lopez out.
Police found the suspect bleeding from cuts to his arms.
As officers approached the man he turned to walk away, giving them a good look at a large butcher knife in his back pocket.
They ordered him at gunpoint to stop, but he instead turned and walked toward them, his hands in the air, and repeatedly asked officers to “Kill me, kill me, I want to die,” according to reports.
He didn’t reach for the knife, but when he got within 10 feet of the officers one fired a Taser round, knocking him to the ground. Lopez was taken to Enloe Medical Center and medically cleared for transport to the Butte County Jail in Oroville.
Investigators said Lopez had been involved in an argument with his wife before the incident. The two people Lopez allegedly battered did not require medical attention.
Lopez was arrested on charges of resisting arrest, battery and vandalism. An immigration hold was placed on him at the jail until his immigration status can be confirmed. Police said it didn’t appear that drugs or alcohol were factors in the incident.
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