Man pleads guilty to attacking California couple in their home, injuring Sheriff’s Deputy

Cole Altuzarra pleaded guilty to several felonies stemming from the 2020 attack in San Juan Capistrano.

A 31-year-old man pleaded guilty Thursday, May, 11 to attacking a couple in their San Juan Capistrano home in 2020 and biting an Orange County sheriff’s deputy who was on the scene.

Court records show Cole Altuzarra, a San Juan Capistrano resident, pleaded guilty to several felonies, including two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, and assault with a weapon on a peace officer. He also admitted to sentencing advancements for inflicting great bodily injury, according to the records.

In 2020, a then-29-year-old Altuzarra was charged with attempted murder and other felonies after he was discovered in a “violent struggle” with the residents of a Via Arboleda home, authorities previously said. During the struggle, Altuzarra bit and severely injured a victim’s ear before biting the chin of one of the three deputies on the call.

The three deputies were left with minor injuries in the aftermath of the attack, OCSD said at the time.

It was not clear what motivated the attack or whether Altuzarra knew the victims, who were in their 60s.

Sentencing is set for Oct. 26 at Harbor Justice Center in Newport Beach, according to court records.

City News Service contributed to this report.