FULLERTON (CBS) — An alert 12-year-old boy helped foil a burglary by calling Fullerton police Tuesday when he didn’t recognize a group of would-be robbers knocking at his door.

Two men and a woman knocked on the front door of the home where the boy was alone at approximately 12:30 p.m., Fullerton police Sgt. Andrew Goodrich said. He didn’t answer because he didn’t recognize the suspects, so they let themselves in through a back door, Goodrich said.

The boy, who had called police, stayed on the line with dispatchers as officers raced to the house, Goodrich said.

The suspects got in a car and fled just as officers arrived, leading to a chase that included a collision with another car at Gilbert Street and Malvern Avenue. The pursuit ended near La Mirada Boulevard and Imperial Highway in La Mirada when the suspects’ car slammed into a fire hydrant, Goodrich said.

(credit: CBS)

Police eventually rounded up Deon William Oden, 23, of Los Angeles, during a search of the area, Goodrich said. Oden was booked on suspicion of burglary, felony evading, felony hit and run and other charges, Goodrich said.

The two other suspects remain at large.

“This method of residential burglary, sometimes referred to as `knock-knock bandits,’ is becoming more common,” said Fullerton police Capt. Dan Hughes, who will soon become the department’s interim police chief.

“We want to remind residents that, depending upon the situation, advising someone who is at your door that you are home without opening the door is something people should consider,” Hughes said.

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