Tarzan-like behavior leads to mental hospital for H.B. man

A Huntington Beach man notorious for an incident at the Santa Ana Zoo, where authorities allege he swung from trees and claimed to be Tarzan, has been sent to a state mental hospital, according to court records.

John Rodenborn, 37, grabbed headlines in August after police said he climbed a wall to get into the zoo and then scaled the monkey exhibit while screaming and covered in mud.

Soon after, authorities said they had linked Rodenborn to an armed robbery at a Westminster gas station and two burglaries in Santa Ana and Costa Mesa.

But Rodenborn will not face charges in those cases, at least for now. An Orange County judge ruled Thursday that Rodenborn is not mentally capable of helping in his defense at trial.

If Rodenborn ever sufficiently recovers that mental capacity, he will be brought back to Orange County to face charges, according to his lawyer Jim Sweeney.

“He’s not mentally incompetent in the sense that he’s certainly articulate enough and smart enough,” Sweeney said. “It’s just that his thought systems are different from the mainstream in a very large way.”

Rodenborn has previous convictions in Orange County for burglary and vehicle theft. He could face up to life in prison if he is convicted of the robbery charge.

He also was charged with trespassing in an animal exhibit and drug possession after the incident at the zoo, according to his lawyer.

“I do think it’s ironic,” Sweeney said. “Here’s a guy who’s arrested for trying to break into a monkey cage. What’s the punishment for that? Now they’re going to lock him up with humans.”