SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Aug. 8, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — A Utah man has been sentenced after his conviction for the 2018 attack on three men in a hate crime at a family-owned business.
Alan Dale Covington, 55, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release for his bias-motivated attack of three men at the business.
Covington was convicted on Feb. 19, 2020, after a five-day trial, for attacking three men with a metal pole because he believed the men were Mexican.
“According to evidence presented at trial, on Nov. 27, 2018, Covington, armed with a metal pole and hatchet, entered a family-owned tire shop, Lopez Tires,” says a statement released by the U.S. Department of Justice. “Upon entering the shop, the defendant demanded to know if the men were Mexican. According to testimony at trial, the defendant shouted that he wanted to ‘Kill Mexicans,’ and then began swinging the metal pole at the business owner, his brother, and teenage son.
“Covington hit the teenage son with the metal pole, taking him to the ground and causing serious physical injury to his face. Covington continued his attack, striking the father multiple times in the back and eventually turned his attack on the business owner’s brother, who was able to escape without injury and report the matter to police.”
Covington was apprehended by police near the tire shop, with a metal pole and a hatchet in his possession, the statement says.
“This defendant brutally assaulted a family and attempted to kill a young man because he believed they were Mexican,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, in the prepared statement. “Such bias-motivated violence is fundamentally at odds with our most deeply held values. The Justice Department will continue to aggressively pursue and bring to justice those who commit such acts.”
U.S Attorney Trina A. Higgins for the District of Utah also commented in the released statement:
“This was a horrific act of hate-motivated violence and there is no place for it in our state or country,” she said. “These victims are part of our community, and no one should ever have to fear for their safety because of their race or nationality. With Covington now behind bars, we hope the victims and their families can find peace and heal from this unspeakable act of hate.”
Clarke, U.S. Attorney Higgins and Special Agent in Charge Sinha made the announcement. The FBI Salt Lake City Field Office investigated the case, with the cooperation of the Salt Lake City Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Drew Yeates for the District of Utah and Deputy Chief Rose Gibson of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section prosecuted the case.
