Suspect arrested in killing of two Southern California police officers.

There were no immediate details about the identity of the man who authorities said gunned down officers Jose Gilbert Vega and Lesley Zereby while they were trying to resolve a domestic dispute Saturday afternoon.

"It was a simple family disturbance and he elected to open fire on a few of the guardians of the city," Palm Springs Police Chief Bryan Reyes, his voice breaking, told reporters. "Today Palm Springs lost two brave officers ... I am awake in a nightmare right now."

Police said Zerebny recently returned to the force from maternity leave after giving birth to a now-4-month-old daughter. Vega, the father of eight, was a 35-year veteran who planned to retire in December and had been working overtime on his day off Saturday. The wounded officer`s name was not released.

Reyes said the three officers were standing near the front door speaking with the man, "trying to negotiate with the suspect to just comply," when he suddenly shot them.

Riverside County SWAT officers quickly sealed off the normally quiet residential neighborhood in this desert resort town as police evacuated some residents. They told others to stay inside their homes, keep their doors locked and not to open them for anyone until further notice.

Although Reyes didn`t identify the shooting suspect, he indicated police had had previous dealings with him.

A neighbor, Frances Serrano, told reporters she called authorities after the father of the shooting suspect came to her house across the street and told her his son was "acting crazy."

He said, “Help. I need help. My son is in the house, and he`s crazy. He has a gun. He`s ready to shoot all the police," Serrano told the Los Angeles Times.

She`d gone back inside her home before officers arrived, Serrano said, and a few minutes after they got there she heard gunfire, "starting with a loud — I mean really loud — `bang!`” Moments later officers were knocking on her door, warning her to stay inside.

Serrano said the suspect had been in jail at one time and had to wear a monitor on his ankle when he was first released. But she added that he had always been friendly and polite to her and her family.

"We never had any problems with him," she said. Serrano also told the Times that she believed the man was in his mid-30s.

As the lockdown continued, scores of police officers gathered at Palm Springs Desert Regional Medical Center to offer a somber salute as the bodies of Zerebny and Vega were loaded into white hearses for transport to a coroner`s office.

Meanwhile, in front of police headquarters, scores of local residents gathered to leave flowers, balloons and cards Saturday night.

"I don`t even remember anything so vicious and cruel," said Palm Springs resident Heidi Thompson. "These officers are responding to a domestic call for somebody in need that they don`t even know. They put their life on the line for us, the community. And they get gunned down? I don`t understand it."

The shooting occurred just three days after a popular Los Angeles County sheriff`s sergeant was shot and killed in the high desert town of Lancaster.

Sgt. Steve Owen was answering a burglary call when sheriff`s officials say he was shot and wounded by a man who then stood over him and shot him four more times.

A paroled robber has been charged with murder in that case.

Lancaster residents held a candlelight memorial for Owen Saturday night.

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10:24

Police do not have the suspect in custody, Palm Springs police chief Brian Reyes told reporters at a press conference Saturday afternoon, but had set up what officials called a “containment area” for several blocks around the house where the shooting took place.

Reyes named the dead officers as Jose Vega and Lesley Zerebny.

Several Swat teams were searching for the suspect, who police said could be outside the perimeter of armored cars, police cruisers and dozens of officers. Residents had been told to evacuate and to not answer their doors.

“I`m awake in a nightmare right now,” Reyes said. “That`s me, but as the chief of police I`ve got to step forward and stay focused.”

“We will do what we need to do,” he said.

Earlier on Saturday, Sergeant William Hutchinson told reporters police were called because of “some kind of family disturbance”. He said that though there was no active shootings situation, “we are actively looking for a suspect at this time”.

“Do not answer your doors for anybody,” he warned.

In a statement, the police did not say the condition of the surviving officer, after the three were shot near the Sunrise Racquet Club on Sunrise Way. Photos and videos posted to social media showed dozens of officers around a single home, where it was thought the suspect may have built a barricade.

A spokesman for the police department did not immediately return a phone call or email requesting details.

Witnesses told the local Desert Sun that they heard 10 to 20 gun shots before 2pm local time.

“It sounded like fireworks at first,” neighbor Juan Garciano told the paper. “I came out of the house and saw police start to block the roads.”

A law enforcement source speaking on condition of anonymity told the Los Angeles Times that one of the officers was in critical condition.

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