Man captured in 91 Freeway standoff is not Arizona serial-killing suspect

CORONA — A man initially reported to match the description of a serial killer linked to seven Arizona deaths was taken into custody today in Corona following a pursuit and subsequent standoff with authorities.

However, Phoenix police tell City News Service the man arrested following the chase is not their suspected serial killer.

“We have been in contact with Califoia authorities and believe these incidents are unrelated,” said Jonathan W. Howard of the Phoenix Police Department.

The driver was identified as Hector Paul Vasquez, according to Riverside County Sheriff’s Department inmate information. He was booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center at 7:38 a.m. for suspicion of driving under the influence of a drug, evading police officers, reckless driving and drawing or exhibiting a firearm. Bail was set at $100,000 and a Monday arraignment was set.

At 12:54 a.m., the Califoia Highway Patrol received reports that Costa Mesa police were pursuing a white Subaru on the San Diego (405) Freeway north of Harbor Boulevard, CHP Officer Dan Olivas told City News Service.

The pursuit also spaed the San Gabriel River (605) and Riverside (91) freeways, ABC7 reported.

The CHP joined in the pursuit, along with other agencies, until a standoff ensued at 2:05 a.m. on the westbound 91 east of South Promenade Avenue, Olivas said.

The driver refused to comply with officers ordering him to surrender, Olivas said.

Authorities shut down the freeway at both ends and summoned SWAT officials from the Corona Police Department, Olivas said.

The standoff ended when suspect, clad in a light blue T-shirt and black shorts, threw down a weapon he had, raised his hands and surrendered to police.

The weapon tued out to be a pellet gun, CHP officials said.

The freeway reopened shortly before 5 a.m.

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