A gunman likely killed four people and then himself before police arrived in a California cul-de-sac neighborhood, authorities said Monday.
Officers responding to reports of shots fired Sunday night say they did not hear any gunfire after they arrived at the chaotic, bloody scene in San Jose. They say several people streamed out of the home, including the wife and daughter of the gunman.
Police used an armored vehicle to take two victims, an adult man and woman, away from the house. They were transported to a hospital, where both died.
Two other adult women and the gunman remained inside the residence that officers surrounded and eventually entered around 1:25 a.m. Monday.
They found all three people with at least one gunshot wound. All died at the scene, police said.
“Family members reported that a man at the house had used a handgun to shoot several people inside,” police Sgt. Enrique Garcia said.
Garcia said no others were shot.
Authorities haven’t released the names of the dead, or how they might have been connected. They have not discussed a motive.
Neighboring homes were evacuated as SWAT officers surrounded the home and negotiators tried to contact the gunman.
Police say there are no other suspects, and they are treating the deaths as a murder-suicide.
Next-door neighbor Alan Bui said he provided refuge for the gunman’s wife.
Bui told The Mercury News in San Jose that he was in his backyard helping his young son assemble a toy when he heard arguing followed by a rapid succession of pops.
“I took my kid and my wife into the master bedroom and hid. But I accidentally left the sliding door open,” Bui said. “The wife jumped the fence and ran into my house and then she locked the door in my kid’s room.”
