A man is suffering from severe burns to his body and face after another man threw corrosive substance at him while he was walking to his parked car on Tuesday in Santa Ana, police said.
The suspect was standing next to a small, dark-colored vehicle next to the victim’s vehicle near 700 block of East Fourth Street around 6:20 p.m., Cpl. Anthony Bertagna said. The suspect was wearing a hoodie and a bandana covering the bottom portion of his face.
The victim walking to his car saw a white container on top of his hood and asked the suspect if it was his container, and asked him to move it from his vehicle. The suspect picked up the container and threw an unknown liquid at the victim, Bertagna said.
The liquid was made up of corrosive material, possibly acid-like, that caused severe second degree burns to the victim’s face and body, according to the corporal. The victim was transported to the Orange County Global Medical Center.
Authorities have only described the victim as a Hispanic man.
The Orange County Fire Authority is determining the origin of the substance.
Police haven’t said whether the attacker has been arrested.
KTLA’s Chip Yost contributed to this report.