Covina man charged with grand theft of plane that landed at Fullerton Airport

A Covina man who authorities say crashed a stolen plane into a fence after landing at Fullerton Airport earlier this week was charged Friday, May 22, with felony counts of grand theft and taking and operating an aircraft.

Christian Estoque, 32, was found shortly after 3 p.m. Wednesday, May 20, by police after landing a Cessna 172S but overshooting the runway and colliding with the fence on the airfield, Fullerton police said. The aircraft suffered minor damage.

Estoque is not a licensed pilot, authorities said, adding that they believe the single-engine, four-seat aircraft was stolen from Chino Airport.

On Friday, Fullerton police said they were trying to determine the man’s intentions when he took the company-owned aircraft.

“We don’t know his motivations,” Sgt. Eric Bridges said. “As of right now, as far as we can tell, it’s some sort of joyride, but we don’t know any other motives.”

Bridges said the plane appears to be one of a fleet of similar aircraft kept at the Chino Airport possibly used for flight instruction.

The suspect had no affiliation with the airport or plane owner, the sergeant said.

Investigators were still trying to determine how Estoque was able to start the plane, Bridges said. Typically, smaller aircraft require keys that are used to start the engine.

Estoque also has pending charges from 2019 for first-degree burglary and theft for which he had pleaded not guilty. He has a prior conviction of driving or taking a vehicle.

For the plane incident, he was being held in lieu of $300,000 bail, jail records show.