Man drives car onto sidewalk, hitting 3 kids near school

SANTA ANA, Calif. (KCAL/KCBS) - Three children were hospitalized after a man armed with a knife and incendiary devices drove his car onto the sidewalk and plowed into them, police say.

Two Taft Elementary School students and one of their cousins were walking to school Monday morning in Santa Ana, California. Video from a home security camera shows the suspect’s red car lurch forward two blocks from the school.

Seconds later, screams can be heard.

“There was a bunch of kids just walking to school, and he went onto the sidewalk and ran a few of them over, unfortunately,” a witness said. “I ran out and saw a few bodies on the ground… I saw an individual with a knife in his hand walking towards the bodies on the ground. He proceeded to turn around and go back to his car.”

Upon their arrival, police found the suspect, identified as 26-year-old Jason Guzman, inside of his vehicle suffering from a stab wound, which is believed to have been self-inflicted. He was arrested.

The children were hospitalized in stable condition.

Guzman allegedly had four incendiary devices in his car that caused an evacuation of the school and the surrounding neighborhood, as well as an hourslong lockdown at the school. The devices were reportedly believed to be similar to Molotov cocktails.

The bomb squad was called, and police did sweeps to make sure there were no additional incendiary devices.

Shortly before the incident, Guzman was found trespassing on the elementary school’s campus, according to district officials. He was removed by authorities.

Authorities were unsure whether Guzman had any relation to staff or students at the school.

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