Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor
REGION - The suspect who infamously broadcast a live Facebook video while he fired upon deputies in unincorporated Covina was sentenced to prison time in January.
Sean Vasquez, 22, pleaded guilty to seven counts of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer January 22, 2019. He was immediately sentenced to 30 years and eight months in state prison, according to Shiara Dávila-Morales, media chief for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. According to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation records and county booking records, as of February 21 Vasquez is serving time in the Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison, Corcoran, after having been released from Wasco State Prison. On April 9, 2017, Deputies responded to a suspect firing at passing vehicles in the 16700 block of East Cypress Street in the unincorporated community of Vincent. As deputies arrived and contained the home, Vasquez fired a handgun in their direction multiple times -- he even fired at two deputies in circling helicopter. No one was injured in the shooting. Vasquez streamed live video as he fired at deputies while taking refuge in and around a home. Eventually, he surrendered without further incident. Originally, Vasquez was also charged with five counts of attempted murder. The five charges were eventually either dismissed or not prosecuted. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor POMONA - Arraignment was continued for the woman prosecutors allege killed her 2-year-old son in Covina. Xa Dinh Ngo, 39, also referred to as “Michelle” Ngo, had her arraignment continued to July 29, according to Ricardo Santiago of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. Ngo faces one count of murder with a special allegation of using a dangerous and deadly weapon, a knife, in the death of her son, Elvis Puente. Ngo allegedly stabbed her son to death multiple times, prosecutors said. Details surrounding Puente’s death remain under a law enforcement security hold, according to Lt. Larry Dietz of the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner. Ngo was briefly hospitalized after a Covina patrol sergeant found Ngo running down the road in the 300 block of North Second Avenue, half-naked and with blood splatters on her body, January 11, 2019 around 3:30 a.m. Police learned Ngo’s address and discovered a small fire on the second floor of her townhome at 141 E. Italia St. once they arrived. Her son was discovered dead in the townhome.
Ngo was uncooperative with officers once detained, but alluded to a possible victim, Covina Police said. Ngo was arrested by Covina Police detectives on suspicion of murder once she was discharged. It is unclear if Ngo suffered from a mental condition, or was under the influence of drugs. If convicted as charged, Ngo could face a maximum of 26 years to life in state prison. Email Newsletter! | Advertise! | Donate! Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor POMONA - The suspect accused of entering a motel room that was not his and sexually assaulting a young girl on a trip from China was immediately sentenced to six years in state prison Monday. Douglas Rivera, 41, pleaded no contest to one felony count of lewd acts upon a child. In addition to prison time, Rivera will submit to lifetime sex offender registration, according to Ricardo Santiago of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. Rivera pleaded no contest at a scheduled pre-preliminary hearing at Pomona Superior Court June 10. Two preteen girls from China were staying in a room at Vanllee Hotel and Suites, 1211 E. Garvey Ave., February 7, 2018. The girls were part of a Chinese tourist group. Rivera drove up to the girls’ room around 10:08 p.m., peered through the open drapes from his truck and masturbated, according to Covina Police. Rivera then exited his truck, stood outside the room and pretended to talk on his cellphone for 30 minutes. Rivera entered the motel room when the girls opened the door thinking he was their chaperone, Covina Police said.
Multitudes of tips phoned in to Covina Police helped identify Rivera -- who he is and where could have been, said Lt. Trevor Gaumer of the Covina Police Department in a previous interview. Covina Police detectives served a search warrant at Rivera’s Baldwin Park home and located the truck parked there February 9. The Dodge Ram 4500 truck was coated with a truck bed liner spray, possibly in an attempt to alter its appearance, Gaumer said. While on the run, Rivera published a two-minute video in an attempt to explain away what happened. “Listen. I did not do nothing [sic] wrong. I was at the wrong place at the wrong time. Something happened at that hotel,” Rivera said in his video. “Please keep me in prayer. God will let this truth out,” Rivera added. When charges were filed last year, Rivera was facing three counts: lewd acts upon a child, first-degree burglary with a person present and indecent exposure. If convicted as charged, Rivera could have been sentenced to 15 years to life in state prison and lifetime sex offender registration. Email Newsletter! | Advertise! | Donate! Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor POMONA - Three men arrested in the 2016 shooting death of another man in a Covina parking lot are scheduled for a pretrial hearing Tuesday. Adam Hernandez, Christopher Avila and Andrew Lengson, the latter considered an accessory to the shooting, are scheduled to appear in Pomona Superior Court April 9. Hernandez and Avila met their victim, 20-year-old Isaac Urena in the parking lot of Clearman’s North Woods Inn, 540 N. Azusa Ave., before Noon August 13, 2016. Urena posted jewelry online for sale and agreed to meet a buyer to complete the transaction, Covina Police said. Hernandez and Avila allegedly met Urena to rob him.
Urena was driven to Clearman’s by a friend. As the sale went sour, Urena was shot while he sat in his friend’s Honda Civic. The friend drove away from the scene, eventually stopping in the parking lot of Faith Church, 1211 E. Badillo St., in West Covina. Paramedics declared Urena dead at Faith Church. His friend was uninjured. Urena died of a gunshot wound to the chest, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner. Hernandez and Avila were arrested soon after the shooting. Avila was eventually released from custody without charges due to insufficient evidence, but new evidence led to his rearrest.
Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor
HUNTINGTON BEACH - A Glendora man and Covina man were arrested Tuesday after an altercation led to the stabbing of a woman.
23-year-old Brandon Lebrun of Glendora and 19-year-old Dominic Piraino of Covina were taken into custody near the scene of the stabbing April 2. Witness accounts and suspect descriptions led to the finding and arrest of the suspects, Huntington Beach Police said. The stabbing occurred around 10:30 p.m. in the Downtown Huntington Beach area. A brief video recording posted by a witness to social media shows a woman arguing with the suspects as they sat in a silver four-door car. The woman kicked the front passenger door.
VIDEO/Lio Talavou.
The men yelled at the woman and she went back for an additional confrontation when the passenger stabbed her. A struggle for the knife ensued and the woman walked away, clutching the knife jammed in her abdomen.
The woman was treated for a non-life-threatening injury, Huntington Beach Police said. “Several witnesses called into our dispatch center and provided numerous license plates. Officers began to check different combinations of the differing license plates provided by witnesses and found a match to the reported suspect vehicle,” Huntington Beach Police said. “Utilizing several police resources along with great communication between officers and dispatchers, they were able to locate the suspect vehicle in a nearby location,”Huntington Beach Police said. Both Lebrun and Piraino were booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon. Piraino was additionally booked on suspicion of attempted murder. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor LOS ANGELES - Autopsies have yet to be performed on the man and woman found dead of apparent gunshot wounds in Covina Wednesday. Monica Ann Dominguez, 52, and Michael John Rivera, 62, were identified by Sarah Ardalani, public information officer with the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner. Rivera is the allegedly gunman. Ardalani listed Rivera as the reported suicide case. Dominguez is listed as the reported homicide.
Covina Police were called to the home in the 200 block of East Center Street around 4:46 p.m. February 13 to a call of a domestic fight an the sound of gunfire from a locked room in the apartment unit. Three adopted juveniles, grandchildren of one of the suspects, were inside the apartment when gunfire rang out. The juveniles were found safe at a neighbor’s home. Police discovered the bodies after breaching the locked door to the room. A handgun was recovered at the scene. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor REGION - Sheriff’s deputies arrested a man January 18 after he allegedly robbed five 7-Eleven convenience stores across the San Gabriel Valley. Julian Larsuel, 19, was arrested early Friday morning after a deputy anticipated his next target, a 7-Eleven in Hacienda Heights. Larsuel is accused of robbing at gunpoint stores in Baldwin Park, West Covina, Covina, City of Industry and La Puente, authorities said. Larsuel allegedly robbed a Covina 7-Eleven, 105 N. Vincent Ave., at 1:10 a.m., where he stole several hundred dollars. In roughly more than one hour, Larsuel is accused of additionally robbing stores in Baldwin Park, 3705 Puente Ave.; West Covina 7-Eleven, 235 N. Azusa Ave..; La Puente, 15211 Amar Rd.; and City of Industry, 16107 Gale Ave., authorities said.
Deputies with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Industry Station were aware of the robberies and began checking stores not yet robbed. A deputy at a Hacienda Heights 7-Eleven, 15780 Tetley St., saw a man arrive matching the robbery suspect some time before 3 a.m. The deputy detained the suspect at gunpoint and he was arrested without incident. The suspect apparently tossed a handgun into a trashcan after seeing the deputy arrive, authorities said. The handgun, an airsoft or pellet gun, was recovered at the scene. Larsuel was arrested at 2:50 a.m. He is being held in lieu of $165,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in Rio Hondo Municipal Court Wednesday, January 23. Written by AARON CASTREJON CityWatch Editor LOS ANGELES – The County DA has filed one count of murder Wednesday against the woman who allegedly stabbed her own son multiple times in a Covina townhouse. Xa Dinh Ngo, also known as Michelle Ngo, 39, faces one count of murder with a special allegation that she personally used a deadly and dangerous weapon, a knife, according to Spokeswman Venusse Navid of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. Ngo is scheduled for arraignment in Pomona Superior Court. She faces 26 years to life in state prison if convicted as charged. Ngo is accused of stabbing her toddler son, 2-year-old Alvis Puentes, on the second floor of their Covina townhome at 141 E. Italia St. January 11 around 3:30 a.m.
A Covina Police sergeant on patrol found a partially-clothed Ngo running down the road in the 300 block of North Second Avenue. Ngo tried to flee from officers, but was ultimately detained and found with blood splattered on her body. She alluded to a possible victim somewhere in town, but refused to speak further, Covina Police said. After Ngo was hospitalized, police learned her address, arrived to the location and found a small fire burning inside, Covina Police said. Police entered the home and discovered Puentes’ body. Ngo is scheduled for arraignment in Pomona Superior Court. Written by AARON CASTREJON | CityWatch Editor WEST COVINA - The man who allegedly knocked his victim unconscious with an empty glass beer mug pleaded not guilty September 24.
Larios Jr. placed the mug on the ground and left with a female companion, according to the Covina Police Department.
The victim was found on the bathroom floor, unconscious. He suffered a skull fracture in the attack, Covina Police said. The motive for the attack is unclear. Bail for Larios Jr. is set at $110,000 and he faces 19 years in prison if convicted as charged. Larios Jr. is scheduled to appear in West Covina Courthouse October 10. Feds’ Investigation in Drugs, Fraud, Identity Theft Leads to Arrests Across San Gabriel Valley8/17/2018 Written by AARON CASTREJON | CityWatch Editor REGION - Federal authorities arrested 12 people tied to a local street gang in a widespread investigation into narcotics, fraud and identity theft. A total of 17 tied to the Puente 13 gang were named in a series of indictments returned by a federal grand jury. The investigation was a collaboration between the United States Secret Service and the Drug Enforcement Administration, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The investigation involved wiretaps that revealed to investigators criminal activity by gang members, gang associates and others, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The 12 arrests were made over Tuesday, August 14 and Wednesday, August 15. Crimes allegedly committed include possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine and heroin, conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, felon in possession of a firearm, bank fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, illegal possession of access devices (credit cards), possession of access device making equipment, and possession of stolen mail, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The investigation is five months in the making, having begun when authorities learned that Puente 13 gang member Victor Ponce De Leon, 26, was involved in drug trafficking after communications were intercepted, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. In an indictment, Ponce De Leon, also known as “Dopey,” alleged he was involved in selling an ounce of methamphetamine while armed with a 9-millimeter handgun. A scheme to smuggle narcotics into the Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic was also uncovered, according to an indictment naming 39-year-old Glendora man Ricky Lee Thornburg, also known as “Shorty.” Thornburg is currently incarcerated at Pitchess. Thornburg planned to receive the methamphetamine and heroin, hidden in plastic drinking straws, from a woman who was to visit, but the shipment was intercepted in May, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. An identity theft ring was also uncovered during the investigation, with stolen credit cards and personal identifying information from numerous common victims were found in the possession of multiple defendants, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Arrested were:
>>CLICK TO READ THE CHARGES AGAINST EACH DEFENDANT
Most of the defendants were arraigned in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. Thornburg, Basye, Arroyave, Maribel Gomez and Jimenezare expected to soon be brought into court. The Glendora Police Department and Culver City Police Department assisted in the investigation. |
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