Man arrested on suspicion of stealing car from garage

Police said they don’t have a problem with people driving cars meant to get someone from Point A to Point B, as long as the car belongs to them.

But that’s where authorities believe there’s a problem with Andre Priest Holmes from Orange. According to police, Holmes, 35, got into a Mercedes-Benz on Monday that didn’t belong to him in the 2100 block of West Oceanfront in Newport Beach and drove it home, all the while with police on his tail trying to stop him.

“He wasn’t driving fast like in a high-speed pursuit,” said Sgt. Steve Burdette. “It was more like a failure to yield for police.”

About 1:30 p.m. Monday, a passerby in Newport Beach reported seeing Holmes acting suspicious as he walked into a West Oceanfront home’s garage and drove out in the Mercedes, Burdette said. Police found him and tried to stop him before he got on the Costa Mesa (55) Freeway, but he didn’t pull over, Burdette said.

He was eventually arrested when he parked the car at his house in Orange, police said. He was booked on suspicion of stealing the car and evading police. He’s being held in lieu of $50,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday.

—Joseph Serna