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Tenant-Landlord Dispute May Have Sparked Fatal Mill Valley Shooting That Left 2 Dead, Including Gunman: Police

A landlord-tenant dispute and pending eviction may have sparked a fatal shooting in a Mill Valley apartment complex Thursday which left two people dead, including the gunman, and a third person seriously injured, Marin County Sheriff's officials said Friday.

The landlord of the apartment complex is in critical condition and his daughter is dead after the shooting at the North Bay residence which sent people running for their lives and put the community on lockdown as SWAT teams searched for the shooter. The Marin County Coroner's Office identified the landlord as 84-year-old Leonard Lew. The woman who died, Lew's daughter, has been identified as 30-year-old Sabrina Elizabeth Lew of Mill Valley.

The man believed to be the gunman was found dead from a gunshot wound inside an apartment complex at 939 E Blithedale, according to sheriff's officials.

Police initially described the suspect as an 80-year-old man. On Friday, Marin County Sheriff's Office identified the suspect at Victor Aurelino Lugo, 71, of Mill Valley.

According to sheriff's officials, dispatchers received a 911 call around 3:44 p.m. Thursday from a resident who reported that two people had been shot at their apartment complex.

A deputy arrived within two minutes and found a man and woman both suffering from gunshot wounds. The man was able to give the deputy the name of the suspect - who also lived at the apartment complex - before he was taken away for treatment.

After investigating conflicting information on the whereabouts of the suspect, the Marin County Sheriff's Special Response Team carried out a "high-risk search" of the complex and found the suspect dead in his apartment, after suffering from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot, sheriff's officials said. A revolver was found lying at the feet of the suspect, officials said.

"Unfortunately the woman did not survive and died at the hospital," sheriff's officials said. Her father spent the night in ICU and is expected to survive.

Although detectives developed a possible motive of a landlord-tenant dispute they haven't had a chance to speak to the landlord because of his condition. Detectives said the landlord went to talk to the suspect Thursday about a pending eviction when an argument broke out. Detectives believe the gun found in the suspect's apartment was the same one used in the shooting.

Aerial footage from NBC Bay Area's Sky Ranger chopper showed people running from the complex behind deputies with drawn guns. A few residents could be seen walking out of their apartments with their hands raised, as officers escorted them outside to safety to the courtyard. 

"I saw a CHP officer running down the street with an unconscious woman draped over his shoulder and he puts her in an ambulance," witness Josh Edelson said.

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