Parents of kidnapped Fairfield boy lash out at police

Brock Guzman, 8, went missing from his parent's home in Fairfield Monday morning after police said someone stole the family's Toyota from their driveway. Brock Guzman, 8, went missing from his parent's home in Fairfield Monday morning after police said someone stole the family's Toyota from their driveway. Photo: Fairfield Police Photo: Fairfield Police Image 1 of / 4 Caption Close Parents of kidnapped Fairfield boy lash out at police 1 / 4 Back to Gallery

The parents of an 8-year-old Fairfield boy found safe after the idling car he was sleeping in was stolen from his family’s house lashed out at police, saying they were treated as suspects and that officers detained the child’s mother on the ground outside her home.

Fairfield authorities countered that they had arrested both parents after they refused to let officers into the home and demanded that police obtain a search warrant. When the officers explained that they needed to be certain the boy wasn’t there, the mother swore at them repeatedly, police said.

The boy, Brock Guzman, was sleeping in the back seat of the family car outside his home early Monday when someone jumped in and stole the car, apparently unaware that he was inside. Several hours later, a person called police after finding the car parked on a street less than 2 miles away. The boy was still fast asleep.

Brock’s parents, Paul and Suzanne Guzman, said Tuesday that officers had mistreated them after they realized their son was missing.

“When we were here, we were treated like criminals from the get-go, from the first officer that showed up,” Paul Guzman said.

The incident began about 4:45 a.m. Monday when Paul Guzman placed his son in the back of the family’s 2001 Toyota Corolla in the driveway of their home on the 1000 block of Meadowlark Drive. The family was preparing for a trip to Napa.

As the father went back inside to get more things, Suzanne Guzman was on her way outside. But when she got there, the Toyota was gone.

“Someone stole my car, and my son is inside of it!” a crying Guzman said in her 911 call to police. Her husband, meanwhile, was driving through the neighborhood in his Ford Crown Victoria, looking for Brock.

When officers arrived at the home, Suzanne Guzman said she asked them to wait for her husband before coming inside.

“My wife wouldn’t let them in the house without me, because we have two dogs, and one of them will bite if I’m not present when people are in there, so she asked them not to enter the house,” Paul Guzman said. “She didn’t give them permission to go into the house until I got back because I was out looking for my son.”

The family showed reporters cell phone video they took showing an officer explaining why they wanted to go into their home.

“The first thing you do, anytime you’re looking for somebody missing is you start where they last were, and check there first,” the officer says. “Every agency does that. That’s what we’re trying to do. We want to confirm that he’s not inside the house, that he didn’t get out of the car and go back inside.”

An officer is also heard saying, “This is about your son. It’s not about you or your wife.”

Suzanne Guzman “continually refused” to allow officers in her home, at one point “demanding we get a search warrant,” police said in a statement.

Police released body-camera footage in which Suzanne Guzman is heard shouting profanities at officers and refusing them entry.

As officers approached the front door, they noticed a reddish substance in the carpet that initially appeared to be blood, the statement said. On one of the police videos, Suzanne Guzman can be heard screaming that the substance is nail polish.

“Suzanne Guzman refused to move away from the door and struggled with officers as they attempted to move her away from the door,” police said.

Video released by the family shows Suzanne Guzman being detained on the ground. “I can’t breathe!” she cries. Both she and her husband were taken in the back of a cruiser to the police station, Paul Guzman said.

Tbe couple were later released.

“Obviously these officers need better training on how to deal with a mother that is hysterical about losing her kid,” Paul Guzman said. “You got to have some compassion for somebody whose kids are missing. In my opinion, it was wrong. It was not a professional way to handle it if your son is missing.”

In their statement, police said they “understand the emotional roller coaster the family is going through.” But they added, “We have an obligation and duty to be as thorough as possible and consider everything that may have occurred.”

A person whom police have described as being “of interest” in the case is being held on unrelated charges. The person’s name has not been released.

Henry K. Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: hlee@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @henryklee