Sparks, Nevada



From the Las Vegas Sun of December 24, 2004

Ex-boyfriend killed in Sparks during confrontation



A man broke into his ex-girlfriend's apartment and threatened her and a friend before he was shot and killed early Friday, Sparks police said.



The name of the deceased was withheld until relatives are notified.



The incident began around 2:40 a.m. when police received a call regarding an unwanted ex-boyfriend at an apartment on Beacon Hill Court, officers said.



When officers arrived they found the ex-boyfriend in an upstairs bedroom with multiple gunshot wounds. He died later at Washoe Medical Center, police said.



Authorities said the man had moved out of the apartment he shared with the woman in late November.



On Thursday, the woman asked a co-worker to help her get a restraining order against her former boyfriend, police said. A restraining order was issued but investigators don't think it had been served yet.



The co-worker, Charles Ketcham, fell asleep at the woman's residence and was there when the ex-boyfriend kicked down the door, police said.



Ketcham was beaten on the head with a metal lamp, police said. The intruder reportedly then attacked the woman, and Ketcham shot him with a handgun.



Ketcham was treated at the hospital for head wounds. The woman refused medical treatment, police said.



An investigation continued.