SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man is scheduled to be arraigned today for attempting to carjack a restaurant employee and assaulting an officer to escape. Steiner Pese Faupusa, 35, Anaheim, is charged with one felony count of attempted carjacking, one felony count of aggravated assault on a custodial officer, one felony count of escape by force or violence from pending felony charges, with sentencing enhancement allegations for committing a serious and violent felony while on probation and a prior strike conviction for robbery in 2012. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 21 years in state prison. The People will request he be held on $500,000 bail at his arraignment scheduled today, Feb. 11, 2016, in Department CJ-1, Central Jail, Santa Ana. The time is to be determined.

On the afternoon of Feb. 9, 2016, Faupusa is accused of being outside of a Coco's Bakery Restaurant in Garden Grove and approaching a restaurant employee as he was leaving the restaurant and going to his car. The defendant is accused of attempting to enter the victim's vehicle through the passenger side and throwing his backpack inside the vehicle. The victim's co-worker contacted the Garden Grove Police Department (GGPD) and verbally confronted the defendant. Faupusa is accused of fleeing on foot and boarding a bus across the street. GGPD arrived at the scene, arrested the defendant, and transported him to jail.

While in jail, a GGPD custodial officer asked Faupusa to leave his cell to be photographed and fingerprinted. Once outside his cell, the defendant is accused of attempting to exit the jail through a locked door. Faupusa is accused of demanding the officer open the jail door and assaulting him by hitting him in the head and body multiple times. The officer was able to activate a panic button and other GGPD officers arrived and restrained the defendant. GGPD investigated this case.

Senior Deputy District Attorney Robert Mestman of the Special Prosecutions Unit is prosecuting this case.

Orange County District Attorney / Case # 16WF0295 / February 11, 2016