UPDATE: Thursday night, smoke and then large orange flames could be seen coming from the home on Chrysler Drive. Fire crews are consider safety risks before moving in to fight the fire.

Two people are dead, including a uniformed deputy, while officers were serving an eviction notice in Modesto Thursday morning.

Two uniformed deputies were serving a notice along Chrysler Drive around 11 a.m., when one of the deputies called in a report of shots fired. One deputy was shot and killed, and another civilian was shot and killed on the property. Some witnesses reported to have heard 14 gunshots.


Stanislaus County Sheriff's identified the officer who was killed as Robert Paris.

The suspect is believed to be James Ferrario, after a FOX40 search of the area and information given by witnesses who live nearby. He is believed to have posted on a blog site that he shot at officers Thursday, however the thread was removed.




Neighbors in the area tell FOX40 that the suspect is well-known to be well-armed. He has supposedly been seen with duffle bags full of weaponry.

Sources say the civilian who was killed is a locksmith. It is normal for a locksmith to go with deputies on an eviction notice delivery to change the locks. Witnesses say they saw a person try to drill the door of the home when the shooting started.

A process server told FOX40 he had tried to serve an eviction notice on this home a few times before, but was never successful, never able to physically hand the notice to person living there. At that point, the deputies were called out to serve the notice. The process server also told FOX40 that the suspect has at least two surveillance cameras pointing to the front door so he can see who is there.

A Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle was called to the scene. MRAP vehicles are typically used in military conflicts and are specifically designed to withstand blasts from improvised explosive devices.




Officers now believe the suspect is barricaded inside his home, and possibly has explosives. The windows on the home have been broken, and witnesses say canisters of tear gas were thrown inside.

The man who they were serving the eviction notice on has military training and officers are concerned he may have explosives or other weapons in the home. Neighbors say the suspect normally wears military gear, and has surveillance cameras and a security gate at his home.

The Red Cross has set up a place to stay for people who were evacuated from the area at a church near the corner of Prescott Road and Rumble Road.

http://www.fox40.com/news/headlines/ktxl-officer-shot-while-serving-notice-at-modesto-home-20120412,0,3238322.story

Press conference:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_STXBFtDYs8

Live stream: http://www.fox40.com/news/livechannel/