COVINA >> A mentally disturbed man who threw knives and hammers at police, holed up inside his home and lit several fires before a SWAT team took him into custody following an eight-hour standoff on Friday, officials said.
Kevin Daniel Harmon, 20, was booked on suspicion of assaulting police officers, felony vandalism, elder abuse and brandishing a weapon at police, Covina police Sgt. Antonio Zavala said.
Police first received a call about 2 p.m. from a woman reporting her neighbor, a 20-year-old man, was acting erratically and throwing items in his front yard in the 1100 block of North Stephora Avenue, Zavala said.
Officers had previously responded to the home before regarding mental health issues involving Harmon, who lives at the home with his grandmother, according to the sergeant.
When they arrived, Harmon initially tried to prevent his grandmother from answering the door for officers, the sergeant said. When she ultimately managed to get to the door and come out, Harmon brandished a machete at the officers.
Harmon allegedly then began throwing items including knives, hammers and picture frames at officers before going back inside his home and refusing orders to come out. No officers were hurt, though several of the projectiles narrowly missed their heads.
A crisis negotiator was summoned to the scene but was unable to persuade Harmon to surrender.
During the course of the hours-long standoff, “He started lighting objects in the house on fire,” Zavala said. He also set off fireworks inside the home.
Police summoned a SWAT team to take over the standoff.
Harmon surrendered to the SWAT team about 10 p.m., just as officers were forcing their way into the home through a window. He was taken into custody without injury.
After being booked into jail, police turned Harmon over to a psychiatric facility for examination, Zavala said.
According to county booking records, he was being held in lieu of $50,000 bail pending his initial court appearance.