A man remained in custody Thursday on suspicion of killing a woman at a Vista home and then refusing to surrender, prompting an hours-long standoff.
Malcolm Morey Pope, 26, is being held on a charge of first-degree murder. Details on his relationship to the victim, if any, were not released by the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office. The victim’s name has been withheld pending family notification.
He was arrested early Wednesday evening, hours after deputies responded to a home in the 700 block of North Citrus Avenue in Vista due to a request for a welfare check.
Deputies first had arrived at about 10 a.m., entered the house and found the victim, whose body bore “obvious signs of trauma,” Lt. Juan Marquez said.
During a subsequent search of the premises, deputies determined Pope barricaded inside a bedroom. After the subject ignored repeated orders to surrender, authorities called in a special tactics team.
The suspect continued refusing to give himself up through the late morning and afternoon. Deputies finally were able to get him into custody in the early evening,
Officials did not specify how deputies were able to arrest Pope, but OnScene.TV reported he exited the home following the deployment of flash bangs and smoke by the SWAT team.
Pope, who is being held at San Diego Central Jail, is set to be arraigned Friday.
City News Service contributed to this report.
Updated 4:40 p.m. April 24, 2025
