California man finds home intruder allegedly firing shotgun at his wife — and ends the threat permanently

A California homeowner was visiting with his neighbors when he heard gunshots and screaming coming from his house and rushed back to find a shocking threat.Riverside County Sheriff's deputies were called to the residence on Heron Way in San Jacinto on Friday just before 10:30 p.m. on reports of gunshots being fired.'His goal was to get his daughter out safely, regardless of what happened to him.' They found a man with gunshot injuries and declared him dead at the scene, according to the Los Angeles Times. They identified the deceased male as 45-year-old Ismael Martinez.The father of the home told them that he had rushed to the house after his wife said a home intruder was firing a gun. The homeowner armed himself with a gun from his garage and exchanged gunfire with Martinez.Martinez was struck, but no other injuries were reported.A police investigation found that Martinez assaulted his 52-year-old girlfriend with a knife before running off to attack the family at the Heron Way home. The woman was found inside a vehicle and transported to a hospital for treatment. She was reported to be in stable condition.Police said there was no evidence that Martinez or his girlfriend had any connection with the residents of the home he allegedly invaded.A neighbor named Frankie Aguilar said the husband and wife of the family had been at his home when the incident unfolded. He said the wife had gone back to her house to charge up her phone when she found the armed intruder.When she was screaming, he was shooting at her with a shotgun, Aguilar said.Aguilar added that his neighbor's teenage daughter was also in the home during the shooting and home invasion.His goal was to get his daughter out safely, regardless of what happened to him, another neighbor named Robert Dorame said to KTLA-TV. RELATED: Intruder violently breaks down door of home with family inside — and gets justice from the end of a gun I'm shattered for them because they're good people, he added. Police said the shooting would be referred to the Riverside County District Attorney's Office for review. Neighbors said they believed the homeowner had acted in self-defense. A friend of the family has opened a GoFundMe donation account to help them deal with the costs associated with the incident. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!