A man was killed and a woman was injured in a La Quinta Cove neighborhood Thursday, and the suspect led authorities on a freeway pursuit that ended in Ontario, where he shot himself.
The investigation began at about 8 a.m. in the 54700 block of Avenida Vallejo, where a man was found dead, according to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department. A woman at the scene was also taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Sheriff's officials later informed the California Highway Patrol that a possibly armed suspect could be heading west out of the desert in a blue Toyota Tundra, according to CHP Officer Darren Meyer.
CHP units spotted the vehicle and began pursuing the suspect around 8:30 a.m. on westbound Interstate 10 near Banning. Meyer said the driver was able to avoid a spike strip laid somewhere near Oak Valley Parkway, and continued driving west into San Bernardino County.
The pursuit ended near Archibald Avenue in Ontario, where the suspect pulled over and shot himself, according to sheriff's Deputy Armando Munoz. The suspect's condition was unknown, but Munoz said the man was taken to a hospital.
Just before 11 a.m., a fire began at the La Quinta home where the homicide occurred, but what connection, if any, the fire might have to the ongoing investigation was not immediately known.
