He demanded free meal at Modesto IHOP. Refused, he made threats, entered kitchen.

A 27-year-old man is in jail after robbing Modesto's International House of Pancakes restaurant early Monday, police say.

Christopher Ceniceros entered the restaurant at 2098 W. Orangeburg Ave. and demanded a free meal, said Modesto police Lt. Martha Delgado. When the waitress refused, Ceniceros threatened to kill her.

He walked behind the counter and into the kitchen, where he began to take items, Delgado said. He told employees he was going to hurt them, and he held an employee in the kitchen, the lieutenant said.

When an officer responded to the 3:45 a.m. robbery report, Ceniceros was in the kitchen and had two kitchen knives, Delgado said. He refused to comply with the officer's commands, was shot with a Taser and taken into custody.

No one was injured, Delgado said. Ceniceros was in custody in the Stanislaus County Jail on Monday morning, with bail set at $50,000.

This story was originally published November 20, 2017 at 8:22 AM with the headline "He demanded free meal at Modesto IHOP. Refused, he made threats, entered kitchen.."