A quiet stretch of the 210 Freeway turned into the scene of a shooting, a car chase, and a fatal police shooting, all within the span of a few hours. It’s the kind of night that reminds you just how fast a routine tow call can spiral into something far more serious.
According to the California Highway Patrol, the trouble started around 2:50 a.m. when a tow truck driver responded to a call on the eastbound 210 near the Grand Avenue exit. What should have been a standard job turned into a confrontation, and investigators say the driver was shot multiple times by the person he’d gotten into it with.
Officers arriving on scene found the tow truck sitting alone, with the driver down and suffering major injuries. The suspect who allegedly opened fire was gone, but not for long. Responding units located a white SUV that had been at the original scene, and when they tried to make contact, the driver took off instead of stopping.
That set off a short pursuit down Citrus Avenue that ended at a gas station in Covina, where things escalated further and an officer ended up firing on the suspect.
The Chase and the Shooting in Covina
Once the SUV pulled into the Fuel Club gas station, officers say the suspect produced a handgun before the officer-involved shooting occurred.
The suspect was taken to a hospital but did not survive. A handgun was reportedly found in the gas station’s parking lot afterward, consistent with what officers described.
A Tow Truck Driver Fighting for His Life
The driver, who works for Jans Towing, was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. A company representative confirmed he was simply answering a gas call on the freeway when the confrontation happened. As of the latest update, he was still fighting for his life.
Bystanders near the gas station described hearing what they first thought were fireworks before realizing it was gunfire, followed by a heavy police presence. One resident said someone at the scene was performing CPR for a stretch of twenty to thirty minutes as officers worked to keep the driver alive.
Freeway Closures and What Comes Next
The eastbound 210 remained closed for hours afterward as investigators processed the scene, with traffic diverted off at the Grand Avenue exit. No timeline had been given for when the freeway would reopen.
The CHP has not released additional details on what led to the initial dispute between the driver and the suspect, and the investigation is ongoing.