Updated: Man Found Dead After 6 Hour Standoff in La Mesa

Updated at 5:06 p.m., Monday, April 21.

Gunfire erupted today at a motel near the intersection of State Routes 94 and 125 while agents with the U.S. Marshals Service were trying to arrest a fugitive, prompting a nearly six-hour standoff that ended when the man was found dead of an apparent self-inflicted bullet wound.

The initial shooting occurred in the 4200 block of Spring Street in La Mesa about 10 a.m., after which the suspect holed up in a room at the lodge along with a woman and refused to surrender, police Lt. Matt Nicholass told reporters.

Officers evacuated the building, blocked off surrounding traffic lanes and called in a sheriff's SWAT team to try to capture the suspect, whose identity was not immediately available.

About 2:30 p.m., officers escorted the woman away from the motel.

Roughly an hour later, officers entered the room and found the suspect dead of an apparent gunshot wound to the head, Nicholass said.

—City News Service