Los Angeles ( CNN ) -- When Melora Rivera heard an intruder kicking the front door of her Venice , California , home Wednesday morning , her reaction was to jump out of bed and onto her roof . `` Once I saw him in the house , I knew that we both could n't be there , '' Rivera told CNN TV affiliate KCAL/KCBS . `` I knew that I did n't want to have a confrontation with him of any sort , you know , not knowing what his intention was . '' Rivera , dressed only in a flannel shirt , used her cell phone to call police as the intruder also climbed onto the roof . `` The drop is , I would guess , more than 20 feet , '' Rivera said . `` So there was no safely jumping off the roof or coming down from the roof at that point . '' Police arrived in about two minutes , but they only saw Rivera on the roof , Los Angeles Police spokeswoman Sara Faden said . Officers initially were n't sure she was n't the intruder they were called to stop . `` It was my biggest fear was that he was going to be forced by the cops to come hide in basically the same place I was hiding , '' Rivera said . Sandra Bullock came face-to-face with stalker in her home . Home intrusions happen every day and everywhere , but this incident is unusual because several of Rivera 's neighbors watching the drama used their cell phones to capture photos and video of the unfolding drama . One especially striking image shows Rivera huddled under an eave with her phone to her ear while the intruder lurks just above . Other photos show police with guns drawn , ready to protect the woman if the intruder attacks . Rivera was finally rescued from the roof with a Los Angeles Fire Department ladder . Police eventually coaxed the intruder down , placing him in handcuffs and charging him with burglary . Officer Faden identified him as Christian Hicks , 29 . Keanu Reeves ' home proves to be a magnet for female intruders . CNN 's Dottie Evans contributed to this report .
Melora Rivera was dressed in only a flannel shirt as she fled to her roof . Police were n't sure at first that Rivera was n't the intruder . The woman said she had been living on the top floor of an apartment building for about two years and had never seen anyone enter or leave it before, according to police. A 29-year-old man was captured and charged with burglary .