JOUR 61: News Story 4

An attempted carjacking took place in a Taco Bell parking lot Saturday night, with a newly married woman still in the passenger seat.
The Woman, along with her new husband, had stopped off at the Taco Bell on East Fourth Ave. in San Mateo on their way to their hotel. The groom got out of the car, leaving the engine running and his wife inside while he went into the restaurant, according to San Mateo County deputy district attorney Sheryl Wolcott.
Before the groom had even made it into the restaurant, the assailant, Alan Ticas-Soto, a 21-year-old man, who was apparently high on methamphetamines at the time, ran through the parking lot and leaped into the vehicle. Ticas-Soto struggled to maneuver the gear stick into reverse, however, according to police.
By this point the 22-year-old bride was frantic, trying to pry free her belt buckle and escape. Perhaps hearing her screams, the groom ran back to the car and managed to pull out his wife whom fell to the ground. She did not sustain any injuries, although she was shaken up.
The suspect then put the car, a 2003 Nissan Altima, into forward gear, but careered straight into a Taco Bell sign, declared police. At this point he left the automobile and fled the scene.
Police officer Brendan Boyle, who was patrolling nearby, saw a man matching Ticas-Soto’s description running southbound on South Delaware street and Ninth Avenue. Back-up was called for and patrol cars soon converged on the scene. The suspect was apprehended and arrested without incident. It was at this point that he told police he had been taking methamphetamines for three straight days.
Ticas-Soto is being held in San Mateo County jail, in lieu of $100,000 bail, facing felony carjacking charges and misdemeanor drug charges. The accused, who does not have a criminal record, pleaded not guilty in San Mateo Superior Court on Monday.
Walcott stated that no attorney has yet been assigned to Ticas-Soto by the county private defender program. If found guilty of the carjacking he faces up to nine years in prison. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 10.
The bride and groom, who were planning to spend their wedding night at a nearby Embassy Suites and were still in their tuxedo and dress respectively, were uninjured in the incident, but according to Walcott, “This took them a little off-track.”