Santa Ana police shot and killed a man who opened fire with a rifle from his rooftop, sending officers and residents scurrying for cover Thursday.
Police said they did not know what motivated the gunman, identified as Ronald G. Theander, 35, to terrorize the neighborhood along the 2400 block of South Towner Street, but residents said he had been acting bizarrely for the past few days.
Theander, who wore camouflage pants and used a rifle with a scope, fired at least eight rounds at residents and police before four officers returned fire.
Two SWAT team officers fired at Theander from a nearby two-story house while two patrol officers shot at him from an adjacent yard. The gunman apparently was struck several times and fell or jumped off the roof into the backyard. He died at the scene, Lt. Robert Helton said.
