Victim and suspected gunman are identified after UPS driver is fatally shot in Irvine
The deceased man and the suspected shooter were apparently "acquaintances," police said. The motive is under investigation.
IRVINE, Calif. (KABC) -- A UPS driver was identified after being shot and killed while sitting in his delivery truck in Irvine, and authorities released the name of the suspect who was taken into custody after a prolonged standoff with police.
The Orange County coroner's office on Friday identified the victim as 50-year-old Expedito Cuesta De Leon of Aliso Viejo.
"Our hearts are heavy with the news of the loss of one of our drivers in Irvine," UPS said in a statement. "We are assisting authorities to understand what happened."
Irvine police identified the suspect as 46-year-old Rhean Fontanoza of Aliso Viejo, who also worked for UPS.
The shooting occurred around 3 p.m. Thursday at an industrial park near the intersection of Chrysler and Bendix, according to the Irvine Police Department. Several people in the area reported hearing multiple gunshots.
According to authorities, surveillance video captured Fontanoza in a pickup truck pulling up alongside the UPS truck then fleeing the scene on Goodyear towards Jeronimo. The truck was described as a silver Honda Ridgeline four-door with a black truck bed liner and black rims.
Cuesta De Leon was pronounced dead at the scene after being found in the driver's seat of the UPS truck. Whether he was followed or if the suspect was lying in wait was unclear, investigators said.
Police said the incident did not appear to be a robbery, adding that the victim was believed to have been targeted.
Hours after the shooting, armored police vehicles boxed in a silver pickup truck at Santiago Canyon Road near Chapman Avenue.
Video from the scene around 6 p.m. showed additional SWAT officers stationed on a hillside above the standoff.
At about 6:15 p.m., officers were seen firing what appeared to be tear gas into the cab of the truck, and a short time later, a police K-9 was deployed, engaging a man in the rear passenger seat of the vehicle. After a short struggle, officers moved in and pulled Fontanoza from the vehicle and took him into custody.
"Although the motive is still unknown, it appears Fontanoza and De Leon were acquaintances," Irvine police said in a statement.
Cuesta De Leon's death had an immediate impact on not just Irvine but also those in Aliso Viejo, where he lived.
"He's going to be missed in the community, really missed," said Shirley Rochon, a neighbor of Cuesta De Leon, who was known by friends and family as "Jay."
"When I heard it on the news this morning I thought, 'Oh no. I hope it's not our neighbor.' Because he worked with UPS quite a few years," Rochon said. "The whole neighborhood knew him. He was always out there in the back doing something and he would be talking to all of us: 'Hi. How are you doing?'
"I can't imagine how in the world somebody could do that to him," Rochon said.
