Covered in leaves, stuck inside a dumpster and high out of his mind — that's how a group of Sherman Oaks neighbors described a burglary suspect they helped catch Tuesday night.
"Instantly, I thought of like Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street when he popped out with all the leaves," neighbor Charan Andreas said. "He was in another world down there."
Sean Bambic said he first spotted the guy breaking into cars before he jumped into the dumpster.
"He tried to get out for a second and then fell back in," Bambic said. "Eventually, came back out and ran down the street up to the neighbor's house and started banging on their door."
Bambic and Andreas followed the man, trying to stop him from breaking into other people's homes. They said he tried to get into several apartments before stumbling upon an older lady's unit.
"Pounded on an older lady's door," Andreas said. "She opened it and he pushed his way into the apartment."
The victim's daughter told CBS LA that the suspect locked the door behind him and started breaking things. Her mom was able to get out and hide in a neighbor's place while Andreas and another neighbor caught up with him in the garage.
"We were like, 'Yo, the police are coming, stay still.' And then he started coming at us, so then I pepper-sprayed him," he said. "We ended up grabbing him and holding him on the ground until police came."
The victim's daughter said the Los Angeles Police Department arrived to the scene in about seven minutes.
Video from the arrest shows officers asking the suspect what he took. He responded with "cocaine."
The Good Samaritans said they tried to give the guy the benefit of the doubt but had to step in.
"Once somebody starts interacting with other people and puts someone else in danger," Bambic said.
"It could have been really bad," Andreas said.
The victim's daughter said they found a brick in her mother's apartment. She believes the suspect may have been hiding it when he barged through the door.
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