Covina police arrest suspect in fatal shooting after hours-long standoff

After an hours-long standoff Wednesday night, Covina police arrested a man suspected of fatally shooting another man the night before.

The suspect was identified as 34-year-old Trevor Howard Thompson, according to the Covina Police Department.

The standoff began at 4:15 p.m. in the 5100 block of Bonnie Cove Avenue, police said. Officers responded to the area after a UPS driver saw a “suspicious subject who he recognized from news reports” flee into an apartment complex, police said.

“Thompson initially refused to surrender to officers and fired a round inside the patio area,” police said. “After nearly a four-hour standoff, Thompson climbed out of the patio, with a handgun, and attempted to flee on foot.”

Officers fired less-lethal rounds to subdue Thompson and took him into custody, police said. The type of less-lethal rounds was not specified.

Officers recovered a handgun at the scene, police said.

Authorities allege that Thompson broke into a vehicle Tuesday night before he shot and killed another man who confronted him about the crime.

Officers were called around 11 that night about a report of a theft from a vehicle in the 1100 block of North Charter Drive.

Residents saw a man leaving the scene and followed him to the 1800 block of East Covina Boulevard, where they confronted him, police said.

During the confrontation, the man reportedly pulled out a handgun and fired at the group, hitting a male adult, according to police.

The shooting victim was pronounced dead at the scene.

The victim’s family identified him as Joey Casias, a 38-year-old father of three who had been preparing to take his kids to Disneyland for the holidays, KABC-7 reported.

Covina police said the gunman ran off.

“On behalf of Chief of Police David Povero, the entire Covina Police Department, City Council, and staff of Covina, our hearts go out to the victim’s family,” the department tweeted. “They are in our hearts and prayers.”

Times staff writer Gregory Yee contributed to this report.