Attacker shot and killed inside Carmichael apartment. Deputies say he was girlfriend’s ex

A man was shot and killed Sunday morning after Sacramento County sheriff’s deputies said he forced his way into a home and assaulted his ex-girlfriend’s new beau as the couple slept in their Carmichael apartment.

The shooting took place on the 5900 block of Sutter Avenue in the Sutter Crossing apartments when the man, described by deputies as an ex-boyfriend, forced his way into the home, according to Sgt. Amar Gandhi, a spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies were called to the scene by the resident, who said that the man had broken into the home and assaulted him while he and his girlfriend were asleep.

According to radio dispatches reviewed by The Sacramento Bee, the male resident of the apartment called 911 just before 2 a.m., telling dispatchers that the intruder had “choked” him.

According to Gandhi, a fight ensued and the resident furnished a firearm during the assault and shot back at the intruder. According to audio dispatches, the resident had fired one shot from a handgun stored under his pillow, then he and his girlfriend escaped the bedroom and hid in the living room to call 911.

Soon after deputies arrived, Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District personnel arrived on scene and pronounced the intruder dead, Gandhi said.

Many details of the encounter — including whether the firearm was registered to the resident — were unknown, Gandhi said, as homicide investigators combed the scene, though the woman did identify the victim as her ex-boyfriend. No arrests were made.

“A lot of this is still going through (the investigation process),” Gandhi said outside the otherwise quiet complex.

“Both the boyfriend and girlfriend, and everybody’s, been very cooperative. So, right now, they’re just kind of working through fact-finding. … There’s a lot of questions that still have to get answered.”

The identity of the man is expected to be released by the Coroner’s Office once relatives are notified of his death.