RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif. — A man wanted for allegedly holding his ex-wife captive and assaulting her for three days was shot and killed by Sacramento County sheriff’s deputies Sunday after a chase that ended along Interstate 80.
The ordeal came to light around 10 a.m. Sunday, several 911 callers reported seeing a battered and bloodied woman screaming for help in the 2200 block of Zinfandel Drive. A nearby resident brought the woman inside and waited with her until deputies arrived, according to the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office.
Three Days of Abuse
Once deputies reached her, the woman described a horrifying stretch of violence. She told investigators her ex-husband had beaten her, pistol-whipped her, and strangled her to the point of unconsciousness over the course of three days. She said he attacked her again Sunday morning, and she only managed to get away by pretending she was dead until he finally left the room.
She warned officers that the man was armed with a handgun and that he was likely still at the residence where the abuse had taken place.
When deputies got there, however, he was already gone, and so was her car. Law enforcement agencies across the region were quickly alerted to be on the lookout for the vehicle.
Pursuit Ends on I-80
Not long after, deputies located the car near Fair Oaks Boulevard and Kenneth Avenue and tried to pull it over. The suspect refused to stop, sparking a pursuit that eventually moved onto eastbound I-80.
The chase came to an end just west of the Antelope Road exit, where deputies opened fire on the man. He was pronounced dead at the scene by Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District personnel. None of the deputies were hurt.
The shooting forced the closure of eastbound I-80 for several hours as investigators worked the scene.
The California Highway Patrol is heading up the investigation into the officer-involved shooting. At the same time, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office Homicide Bureau and its Professional Standards Division are running their own separate reviews, and the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office plans to conduct an independent examination as well.
As is standard procedure, the deputies who took part in the shooting have been placed on administrative leave while the multiple investigations move forward. Authorities have not released the identities of either the suspect or the victim, who is reportedly receiving medical treatment following the assault.
