Riverside crime spree starts at McDonald’s

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — A man threatened to blow himself up, rammed two cars in a McDonald’s drive-thru, led police on a chase and ran from his burning van in a crime rampage that ended when a police dog captured him, Riverside police say.

Hunter Rolf, 24, who told police he is a transient from Washington state, was arrested about 5:10 p.m. Sunday for investigation of assault with a deadly weapon, failure to yield to a police officer and a misdemeanor drunken driving warrant out of Washington, said Lt. Dan Hoxmeier.

At McDonald’s, drivers scrambled out of the way and customers and employees inside locked the doors when the threats started around 4:30 p.m. Sunday, the Riverside Press-Enterprise reported.

Sandra Chacon said she was with her family waiting in the drive-thru lane when Rolf rammed them twice, shattering the rear windshield and making a big dent in the back.

“This is somebody who could have taken our lives for no particular reason,” Lopez said.

Rolf left the fast-food restaurant but refused to stop for officers, police said, but he did stop not far away to build barricades in the front and back windows of his van.

When smoke started coming from the van, officers fired a “less-than-lethal round” into a window so they could see in, officers said.

As fire spread, Rolf ran into a nearby field, but was captured by a police dog, officers said.

No one was injured and no bombs were found in the van.

Suspicious noises while the van burned were thought to be butane canisters catching fire.

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