Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor COVINA – A West Covina man was arrested May 25, identified as the suspect who threatened a video game store employee with a knife and stole cash and gaming consoles.
London Paige Leones, 22, was booked on suspicion of robbery. The crime took place around 2:09 p.m. at 1Up Video Games, 111 N. Citrus Ave. May 15, according to the Covina Police Department. “The suspect … held a knife up to a store employee and demanded money. Fearing for his life, the employee complied and Leones took approximately $450 from the cash register, as well as a Playstation 5, and two Gameboy Advances,” according to the Covina Police Department in a written statement. A search warrant served at Leones’ West Covina home reportedly revealed the stolen gaming devices, weapon and clothing related to the crime, according to the Covina Police Department. Leones was released on bond. He is scheduled to appear in the West Covina courthouse Thursday, June 9. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor COVINA - A 75-year-old Monrovia man was arrested Friday after he allegedly followed a Covina officer into a secured area of the station and brandished a knife.
Luis Hurtado allegedly went to the station, 444 N. Citrus Ave., and followed the officer who was driving in around 6:15 p.m., according to the Covina Police Department. “The subject confronted the initial officer in the secured area, brandished a knife in a threatening manner and made statements consistent with his desire for police to take his life,” according to the Covina Police Department in a written statement. Backup officers arrived and subdued Hurtado with less lethal rounds. No officers were injured. Hurtado was booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon. The case will be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for criminal filing consideration, the Covina Police Department said. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor COVINA - A fight likely fueled by alcohol left two men with knife wounds and two other men, including the alleged knife attacker, in jail Friday.
Officers responded to Rude Dog Bar & Grill, 114 N. Citrus Ave., around 11:13 p.m. May 27 on a reported stabbing. Officers found one man who was stabbed in his lower back and a leg. Another man suffered lacerations to his hands, according to Lt. Tony Zavala of the Covina Police Department. The stabbing suspect, 27-year-old Matthew Rene Reyes, was found unconscious in the street on Citrus Avenue outside the bar after having been subdued and beaten by other revelers, including a friend of one of the stabbing victims, Zavala told SGV CityWatch. One of the stabbing victims “soccer kicked” the suspect while the suspect was on the ground, Zavala told SGV CityWatch. Officers believed a war of words, or a physical altercation led to the knife attack. Both men who suffered the knife wounds were uncooperative with officers, Zavala told SGV CityWatch. “It appeared the suspect went back to his vehicle and armed himself with a knife. It was described as a hunting knife,” Zavala told SGV CityWatch. “He returned and stabbed the victims while they were outside the bar.” A friend of the stabbing victim was applying pressure to his confidant’s wounds and became confrontational with officers. An officer was eventually punched in the face, Zavala told SGV CityWatch. The confrontational friend was subdued with a stun gun. Reyes, a Baldwin Park man, was booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon. He is being held in lieu of $30,000 bail ahead of a scheduled appearance in the West Covina courthouse Wednesday, June 1. The friend who allegedly assaulted the officer is 54-year-old Alfredo Garcia, from Pomona. He was booked on suspicion of resisting/delaying an officer. Court date information for Garcia was not readily available. Zavala believes intoxication played a role in the melee. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor COVINA - A stabbing and potential shooting erupted at Forest Lawn in Covina Saturday afternoon, sending three men to a nearby hospital where they are listed in stable condition.
A group of people began fighting at the cemetery, 21300 Via Verde Street, May 21 for still unknown reasons. Two people wee stabbed and a third may have been shot, according to Sgt. Tinoco of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Walnut/Diamond Bar Station. Deputies responded to the scene at 5:49 p.m. “Nobody is cooperating with us, nobody is speaking to us,” Tinoco told SGV CityWatch. During the investigation, hospital staff called authorities about three victims who showed up to be treated, Tinoco told SGV CityWatch. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor COVINA - A driver described as a felon was arrested Wednesday afternoon after he fled from a traffic stop, took refuge in a home and escaped to a roof before being taken into custody, the Covina Police Department said.
Police stopped the driver of a green Geo Prism for expired registration and Azusa Avenue and Covina Boulevard around 3:15 p.m. May 18. As officers approached the stopped vehicle, the driver sped away. The chase ended at the dead end of the 1200 block of West Masline Street where the suspect decided to flee on foot, according to Lt. Robison of the Covina Police Department. A P80 Glock ghost gun was recovered from the vehicle, Robison told SGV CityWatch. A search of the neighborhood did not turn off the suspect. As a resident was returning to her home, the suspect fled the residence and took refuge on the roof, Robison told SGV CityWatch. “He ran and jumped on the roof and then finally got down,” Robison told SGV CityWatch. James Richard Gutierrez, 27, was booked on suspicion of being a felon in possession of a firearm, carrying a concealed weapon in a vehicle, being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm and ammunition and burglary, Robison told SGV CityWatch. Gutierrez is being held in lieu of $75,000 bail ahead of a scheduled appearance in the West Covina courthouse May 20. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor COVINA - Six days after a police shooting left a young man dead, Covina Police department release details of what led up to the deadly encounter.
Officers responded to country liquor, 124 E. Arrow Hwy., April 9 at 10:10 p.m. to several 9-1-1 calls reporting a man with a gun. The suspect, who the callers described, was drinking a beer outside of the liquor store and was allegedly arguing with customers, according to the Covina Police Department. After locating three a man outside of the liquor store, Police noticed one man who fit the description of the suspect. “The officers identified a man who fit the description of the call and gave lawful commands not to reach for anything [“Don’t reach for anything.”] The individual did not comply with these commands and begin to remove what officers reasonably believed to be a gun from his waistband,” according to the Covina Police Department in a written statement. Officers then shot 25-year-old Daniel Valdivia, a Covina resident. He was given medical aid and transported to a hospital where he died. Recovered was a BB gun which resembles a Glock handgun, the Covina Police Department said. Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Homicide detectives were initially called to investigate. The investigation has since been handed over to the California Department of Justice. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor COVINA – Detectives are investigating the death of a man in his 20s who was found near a wash Monday afternoon.
Few details are available, but firefighters were called by Covina Police officers to the 400 block of South Barranca Avenue south of East Puente Street at 2:54 p.m. April 11, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department. Video provided to SGV CityWatch shows a lifeless body of a shirtless man laying on what appears to be an access road near the wash behind apartments in the neighborhood. The man has yet to be identified. Next of kin have yet to be notified, according to Sarah Ardalani, public information officer with the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner. While the coroner has not yet identified the man, a memorial honoring him identified him as Daniel Matthew Diaz, 25. It is unclear how Diaz died. He reportedly suffered head trauma. A 10-year resident of the neighborhood described the day the body was found. “I had passed by and noticed that cops were blocking off the area and within 30 minutes it had yellow tape. Ambulance and paramedics were dispatched but left right away and Covina police officers stayed looking around for evidence,” according to the resident who asked that her name not be used. “When I was driving by there I had seen a young man digging in trash bins. I have a feeling it might be the same one. Because I drove by there again 40 mins after seeing him and there was already police blocking off the area,” the resident told SGV CityWatch. “We never see anything like this around these streets. It’s quiet around here but have been seeing a lot of homelessness lately. It’s sad.” The coroner will determine cause of death. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor OAKLAND – The California Department of Justice announced Monday that it is investigating the Covina Police shooting that killed a man April 9.
The shooting took place in the 100 block of East Arrow Highway around 10:10 p.m. Covina officers were reportedly responding to a call for assistance, according to Office of the Attorney General. The man killed was identified by the county coroner as 24-year-old Daniel Valdivia, a Covina resident. No other details are available. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau initially responded and began investigating. The California Department of Justice’s California Police Shooting Investigation Team for Southern California responded to the scene to investigate after being notified by local authorities. The state-level investigation is being conducted pursuant to AB 1506 and requires a state prosecutor from the attorney general’s office to investigate police shootings involving a questionable use of force, or a shooting resulting in the death of an unarmed civilian. AB 1506, which was signed into law September 30, 2020, went into effect July 1, 2021. For more information, visit the Office of the Attorney General website. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor COVINA - A man was hospitalized and later died from wounds suffered in a police shooting, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said.
The police shooting occurred around 10:10 p.m. in the 100 block of East Arrow Highway. No officers were injured during the shooting, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. It is not yet publicly clear what led to the police shooting. COVINA – Police are searching for the armed suspect who assaulted the female employee of a business early Wednesday.
The assault occurred in the 1400 block of North Hollenbeck Avenue April 6. The suspect entered through an unlocked door, grabbed the employee by the throat and forced her to a restroom, according to the Covina Police Department. The business was described as a pet grooming business. “A coworker interrupted the assault after he heard the victim screaming and confronted the suspect. The suspect brandished a black semi-automatic handgun and fled on foot,” according to the Covina Police Department in a written statement. The suspect was described as a Black or Hispanic light-skinned man in his 30s. He stood 5 feet 9 inches tall. He wore a black hooded sweatshirt, faded blue jeans and brown shoes. Anyone with information that can identify the suspect is urged to call Covina Police Detective M. Esquivel at 626-384-5621. Reference case 22-9499. |
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