Officer Breaks Into Home, Kills Wife, Her Boyfriend, Himself : Violence: The estranged couple’s three young sons are found unharmed, huddled in a bedroom of the Glendale apartment.

An off-duty Los Angeles police officer burst into his estranged wife’s Glendale apartment and shot her and her new boyfriend to death before turning the gun on himself, Glendale police investigators said Thursday.

The couple’s three young sons--ages 3, 5 and 6--were found unharmed and huddled in a bedroom about 8:30 a.m. Thursday. Neighbors saw that the apartment door had been kicked open and called police, Sgt. Leif Nicolaisen said.

Los Angeles police identified the officer as Victor Felix Ramos, 29, of the department’s West Los Angeles Division. Ramos had been on the force three years and was assigned to patrol duties, said LAPD spokesman Arthur Holmes.

Glendale police identified Ramos’ estranged wife as Melba Ramos, 26. The name of the second man was not released, pending notification of relatives.

Since the couple separated about three months ago, they had been involved in several heated arguments over Melba Ramos’ new relationship, Nicolaisen said. Ramos knew the other man involved, the sergeant said.

Sometime after 11 p.m. Wednesday, Nicolaisen said, the officer forced his way into his wife’s two-story townhouse in the 500 block of East Garfield Avenue.

There was a confrontation involving the three adults in an upstairs bedroom, and Ramos used his 9-millimeter semiautomatic pistol to shoot his wife and the other man several times, Nicolaisen said.

Afterward, the officer fired one fatal round into his chest, Nicolaisen said.

When police arrived Thursday morning, the children were “holed up” in another bedroom, the sergeant said. One of the boys led police to the bodies, and the children were later taken into protective custody at the Glendale Police Department.

“They’re traumatized,” Nicolaisen said.

Residents of the building also said they were shocked by the killings, and several said they had no idea that the couple were separated.

Alex Alejandro, who lives down the hall from the apartment where the bodies were discovered, said that Melba Ramos had been acting as the on-site building manager, collecting rent and helping other tenants with repairs.

“She was a very nice lady,” he said.

Alejandro said that he and his family heard a “loud banging” and later heard many “sharp pops,” in the apartment Wednesday night. He said his wife called the police Thursday morning after she noticed that the apartment door was ajar.

The building’s owner, Timmie Kunkew, said Melba Ramos had recently moved into a smaller, less expensive unit and had been having trouble paying the rent.

Robert Tokatylan, who said he once lived in the building and knew the Ramos family, said the officer was devoted to his children.

“He was always very happy with his kids,” he said.