SWAT standoff near San Diego ends in apparent suicide

SAN DIEGO -- A 15-hour standoff between SWAT officers and an armed man inside a home in the suburb of La Mesa ended early Tuesday when the suspect was found dead of an apparent suicide, authorities said.

Several nearby homes were evacuated after a man inside the home, believed to be armed with a rifle, a shotgun and two handguns, fired multiple shots, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department said.

A woman and three teenagers inside the home had fled after a domestic dispute between the woman and the 47-year-old man, authorities said.

Unable to contact the man via a bullhorn or cellular phone, SWAT officers surrounded the home. A non-lethal device was used to fill the home with smoke, officials said.

Later, a robot was deployed around 1 a.m., which found the man dead in a bedroom, the victim of an apparently self-inflicted gunshot, officials said.

The county medical examiner will determine the identity of the suspect and his cause of death.

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tony.perry@latimes.com

Twitter: @LATsandiego