Suspect arrested in shooting death of Palm Springs police officers

Emergency vehicles as far as I can see on Del Lago. The epicenter of this shooting is in there. #palmsprings pic.twitter.com/F6KZEbyY4e

— Brett Kelman (@TDSbrettkelman) October 8, 2016

A suspect has been taken a suspect into custody following the fatal shooting of two police officers in Palm Springs, California, who were responding to a domestic disturbance, authorities said. A third officer was wounded.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said four officers had arrived on the scene of the disturbance “and attempted to have a male step out” of a residence when they were met with gunfire.

“Additional officers responded and administered life saving measures to the injured officers and attempted to apprehend the suspect,” a statement from the department said. “The suspect refused to surrender and exchanged gunfire with officers as he barricaded himself in his residence.”

The Los Angeles Times reported the dispute was between a father and son. Palm Springs Police Chief Bryan Reyes identified the officers killed as Jose “Gil” Vega and Lesley Zerebny but he did not name a suspect.

“It was a simple family disturbance and he elected to open fire on the guardians of the city,” Reyes said.

Palm Springs Police Sgt. William Hutchinson advised residents in the area to stay indoors in the hours following the shooting, which took place Saturday afternoon. Images and videos on social media show a heavy police presence near the shooting with at least one helicopter overhead.