Man Shoots Woman, Himself; Two Kids Were in Apartment

Two toddlers apparently saw their father shoot their mother before he killed himself Thursday in a Santa Ana apartment, police reported.

Police found Abel Ortega, 55, dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to his head at 11:22 a.m. in the apartment that the 24-year-old mother of his children lived in on North Garfield Street, said Sgt. Raul Luna.

Authorities took the unidentified woman, who suffered several bullet wounds in the upper body, to Western Medical Center-Santa Ana. Although listed in critical condition, she is expected to live, Luna said.

Relatives told police that the couple had lived together in Georgia before the mother moved to Santa Ana in February. Relatives said the two had a dispute over child custody, Luna said.

Neighbors told police Thursday that Ortega arrived at the apartment in a taxi and appeared angry when he walked up to the second-story apartment. After the shots were fired, neighbors said they saw the couple’s 3-year-old daughter walk out of the apartment clutching a doll.

The daughter and her 2-year-old brother were both in the apartment during the shooting and were released to relatives.