Intoxicated intruder shot and killed by Patterson homeowner, Sheriff’s Office reports
A Patterson woman acted in self-defense when she fatally shot an intoxicated intruder as her husband struggled to keep the man out of their home, the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Office reported.
Patterson Police Services deputies were dispatched Saturday night at 10:20 p.m. to a report of shots fired at a residence on the 500 block of Ashwood Lane, according to a news release.
The caller reported getting a phone call from a female, Mandarin-speaking neighbor saying she had just shot and killed an intruder.
Arriving deputies found a man, later identified as 22-year-old Patterson resident Angelo Santana, on the ground near the entryway to the house. To secure the scene, deputies established a perimeter and used a loudspeaker to call anyone out of the residence.
The preliminary investigation, including looking at surveillance camera footage and interviewing witnesses and the couple involved, indicates that heavily intoxicated Santana tried to force entry into the home.
“Interviews with those familiar with Santana indicate he had a history of alcohol substance abuse, wherein he would regularly show up unannounced trying to find friends and acquaintances of his in the same neighborhood,” the news release says.
The house belongs to a 50-year-old woman and her 45-year-old husband. There were no children in the house, Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Luke Schwartz told The Bee, and there is no indication the couple had any previous contact with Santana.
The husband suffered minor injuries, including abrasions and scratches to his back, while fighting to defend his home, the news release says.
As the two men struggled, the female homeowner got from an upstairs bedroom a revolver acquired just the day before, according to the Sheriff’s Office. In defense of her husband, she fired all the gun’s rounds into Santana.
“The fight with the homeowner was a pretty violent one,” Schwartz said by text. “Can only imagine how terrifying it must’ve been for these folks.”
Investigators have made no arrests in this case, and their preliminary findings are that the shooting was in self-defense, the news release says. Santana was not armed at the time of the shooting, and the homeowners are fully cooperating with detectives.
Anyone with information relevant to the investigation is urged to contact Detective Rodriguez at 209-652-0518.
