A resident on Campos Place in Empire, Calif., shot and killed an intruder on Wednesday, March 1, 2017, according to the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department.
An Empire resident fatally shot a man who broke into his home Wednesday night, and detained a second person. Two other people are being sought, the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department said Thursday.
Detectives believe the four did not randomly target the home and that the crime is related to a robbery at a park in Modesto’s airport neighborhood that occurred about 20 minutes prior, said Sheriff Adam Christianson.
The first incident took place at 11:23 p.m. in Oregon Park. Two victims reported that they were assaulted and robbed by three males and a female.
At 11:44 p.m., deputies were dispatched to a report of a home-invasion robbery in the 5200 block of Campos Place in Empire.
Deputies found a 24-year-old man dead inside the home and a 15-year-old boy being detained by the resident, Christianson said. In addition to the male resident who shot the intruder, a woman and a child live in the home, he said.
The woman answered the door at the home Thursday afternoon. She said she had her 7-year-old daughter hid in a closet when the suspects broke in, but she declined to comment further about what transpired.
Homicide detectives responded to the scene and learned that the 24-year-old was shot and killed by the resident during a struggle inside the residence. Christianson did not know if the gun belonged to the resident of if it was taken from the intruders.
The 15-year-old was arrested on suspicion of home invasion, robbery and murder because his accomplice was killed during the commission of a felony.
The resident was not arrested.
