A man and woman in Chino Hills were able to fight off a man armed with a gun after he showed up to their apartment and tried to rob them.
The attempted robbery happened around 12:58 a.m. Saturday at 16301 Butterfield Ranch Rd. when the 26-year-old suspect, who was a friend of the victims, showed up at their doorstep, went inside and then took out a gun and demanded "a large amount" of cash, San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner John McMahon said.
That's when one of the victims, a 25-year-old woman, grabbed a knife as the second victim, a 29-year-old man, tried to wrestle the gun away from their attacker, McMahon said.
Both victims suffered knife wounds during the struggle but were finally able to run outside and call police.
The suspect remained barricaded inside the apartment, prompting responding deputies to call SWAT for help. After "several hours," SWAT officers entered the apartment and found the suspect dead inside.
It was not immediately clear if he died of possible knife wounds during the struggle with the victims or from a gunshot, but detectives are treating the investigation as a homicide.
The suspect's name has not been released, pending notification of family members.
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Anyone with information is asked to contact homicide detective Jerry Moreno at 909-387-3589. Anonymous tipsters can also contact WeTip at 800-78-CRIME or www.wetip.com.
