A police sting at a Bay Area fast food restaurant stung some alleged robbers this week, but not before the miscreants slammed their car into the cops' in an effort to escape.

It all went down at the In-N-Out Burger located at 11 Rollins Road in Millbrae. According to San Mateo County Sheriff's Department spokesperson Detective Salvador Zuno, a recent increase in auto burglaries in the area surrounding the restaurant had spurred the department to mount an undercover operation in the In-N-Out parking lot.

And at 8:40 Wednesday night, that operation was rewarded, as detectives watched four men drive into the lot and begin to engage in "suspicious behavior." According to Zuno, three of the men hopped out of the car and started looking inside parked vehicles for "visible property."

When they spotted an SUV with goods inside, Zuno says the men "went back to their vehicle" then "parked near the SUV."

That's when the watching detectives pulled up behind the suspects' car in their unmarked vehicle, lights flashing and siren blaring, Zuno says. Though the detectives boxed the suspected thieves in, Zuno says the men tried to evade capture by slamming their car into the cops'.

That escape attempt proved unsuccessful, Zuno says, and the four men were arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, conspiracy, attempted burglary and possession of burglary tools. They've since been identified as 21-year-old Richmond resident Eddie Nute, 32-year-old San Pablo resident Stephen Espadron, 32-year-old Richmond resident Claude Frazier and 33-year-old San Pablo resident Exrill Wilson.

Nute, who police say was the driver, also had an outstanding $50,000 burglary warrant, Zuno says.

All four of the men have been booked into San Mateo County Jail, Zuno says. As this investigation remains open, anyone who knows more about the suspects or any past crimes they might have committed is urged to contact Detective Patrick Carey at (650) 259-2321 or by email at [email protected].