Tuesday, Sept. 30, 1997 | 9:49 a.m.
Metro Police are scrambling today to determine how an Orange County, Calif., murder suspect was mistakenly released from jail.
"There were some mistakes made," Metro spokesman Phil Roland said. "We're trying to figure out why."
Nineteen-year-old Juan Perez, also known as Mike Hernandez and Arturo Ramirez, was arrested by Metro on Sept. 17 on traffic violations and for having an unregistered firearm. He was rebooked when it was learned that he was wanted on a murder charge in California.
But Perez was released the next day on a court order. Why the court order was issued is the question police are investigating, Roland said, noting that a preliminary investigation led police to believe "it was a case of mistaken identity."
"We had two Hernandezes in there," he said. "There could have been a court order to release a Joey Hernandez, and the two were mixed up."
Perez was tracked to the Flamingo West Apartments by fugitive detectives, Sgt. Will Minor said.
A standoff ended peacefully 6 1/2 hours later when Perez and four juveniles he was barricaded with inside an apartment surrendered. The apartment building was surrounded by officers.
He was booked once again about 9 p.m. Monday on a fugitive-from-justice charge and held without bail, a jail spokeswoman said.
Police earlier called the apartment and spoke to a man who identified himself as Perez. He refused police orders to vacate the apartment and police began attempts to extract him about 1:45 p.m.
Police dogs, plainclothes officers, SWAT members with armored vehicles and FBI agents surrounded the first-floor apartment, using the apartment complex rental office as a base.
Police evacuated the immediate apartments and blocked off the complex, not allowing anyone to enter or leave.
After several hours of negotiations and a flash grenade lobbed into a window, one of the four juveniles vacated the apartment at 7:20 p.m. One by one, the other three came out, and at 8:10 p.m. Perez surrendered to police.
The four juveniles were released without charges, but Perez was returned to the detention center.
"Police did a great job doing this without bloodshed," said Dottie Brooks, who was visiting her daughter for dinner but was not allowed by police to leave. "It showed they were patient and compassionate. Snipers were lying on pavement for over five hours."
Melvin Palomat, who was evacuated from his apartment, had a different opinion on police tactics. "I went out of my apartment, and they just told me to come over, no explanation. They wouldn't even let me get my mother-in-law. She has a weak heart and could have died of nervousness."
Kimberly Abbott said, "They wouldn't let me get my kids, so I said you'd better send someone."
"They sent about 10 people, SWAT guys, and they walked me and the boys out," said Caroline Jones, who was baby-sitting for Abbott. "I saw it on the 4 o'clock news before they got us, and I live right across from the apartment they were staking out."
Several schoolchildren didn't seem to mind the inconvenience as they thought the incident made a good excuse for not completing their homework. They made up for the missed school work by questioning reporters, fiddling with television cameras and helping police roll up unused crime scene tape.
SUN REPORTER Cathy Scott contributed to this story.
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