Christopher Avila and Adam Hernandez
COVINA – Isaac Urena (20) of Covina was shot dead Saturday morning, August 13, 2016, at an arranged meeting at Clearman’s North Woods Inn parking lot in Covina for an online jewelry sale.
Covina Police Sergeant Gregg Peterson announced that suspects Adam Hernandez (21) and Christopher Avila (20) were taken into custody on suspicion of murder and robbery by detectives and SWAT officers armed with search warrants Sunday morning, thanks to leads provided.
Crime scene of Covina murder (Leo Jarzomb/San Gabirel Valley Tribune)
“These guys were relentless in their pursuit of these suspects… working, literally, around the clock,” Sgt. Gregg said.
Urena and a friend who drove him to the meeting with a prospective buyer to sell some jewelry, encountered not one, but two men who robbed them at gunpoint before shooting Urena.
The friend fled the scene with mortally wounded Urena in a Honda Civic to Faith Community Church in West Covina, where paramedics attempted to sustain his life. The coroner pronounced him dead.
The driver was not wounded, and it has yet to be determined about the whereabouts of the jewelry in the robbery. A handgun discovered during the searches may also be linked to the shooting death.
According to county booking records, Hernandez and Avila were being held in lieu of $1 million bail each pending their initial court appearances, scheduled for Tuesday in West Covina Superior Court. Police planned to seek an increase in bail to $2 million, Sgt. Peterson concluded.
Police have Clearman’s North Woods Inn parking lot cordoned off where they believe a man was shot late Saturday morning. The man was found fatally shot inside a Honda Civic in the parking lot of Faith Community Church on San Bernardino Road in West Covina Saturday August 13, 2016. (Photo by Leo Jarzomb/San Gabriel Valley Tribune)
Anyone with information on the case is encourage to contact Covina police detectives at 626-384-5628, Tips may also be submitted anonymously to L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.
