NORWALK : Man Kills Brother, Self in Standoff With Deputies

A man shot and killed his brother during a standoff with deputies Monday and then committed suicide after saying he did not want to go to jail, a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department spokesman said.

The shootings occurred in a two-bedroom Norwalk house owned by the 46-year-old gunman, who lived there with his 43-year-old brother and his brother’s girlfriend, said sheriff’s spokesman George Ducoulombier.

“Detectives believe a possible motive was the victim . . . physically abusing the suspect for a period of time,” Ducoulombier said.

The shootings occurred after deputies were called to the home to try to talk to the suspect. While they were at the front door, they heard what sounded like someone loading a weapon, possibly a rifle, Ducoulombier said.

Special Weapons and Tactics deputies and crisis negotiators were then summoned. The negotiators contacted the gunman, “who said he had shot his brother and did not want to go to jail,” Ducoulombier said.

At 8:48 a.m., the deputies fired tear gas into the home, entered and found the bodies.

The names of the men were withheld pending notification of relatives.

Ducoulombier said detectives want to question the girlfriend, 47-year-old Mariet Showers, who disappeared after running to a neighbor’s home at 4:20 a.m. to report that a shooting had taken place in the 14300 block of Brink Avenue.