The incident occurred at 12:28 p.m. in the 3800 block of Bristol Street, a spokesperson for the Santa Ana Police Department said. Authorities add that no one on the ground was injured.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the Cessna 414 aircraft declared an emergency before slamming into the parking lot.
The plane struck at least one unoccupied vehicle, whose owner was shopping at the time.
The crash site is just north of the popular South Coast Plaza shopping mall and a few blocks northwest of John Wayne Airport.
The cause of the incident was not immediately known.
DEVELOPING: More details will be added to this report as they become available.