The deputies talked to Ron Ely and identified his son, 30-year-old Cameron Ely, as the suspect. Law enforcement asked those living in nearby homes to shelter in place while they searched the property for the suspect.
My videographer Oliver Forster captured sounds of gunfire outside #HopeRanch home on Tuesday night before 10 pm pic.twitter.com/AqnrLZB9oe
— TRACY L. LEHR (@KEYTNC3Tracy) October 16, 2019
"We wanted to make sure all the residents were safe while we searched the area," Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office Lt. Erik Raney told KEYT.
According to the Associated Press, Cameron Ely posed a threat to deputies, four of whom opened fire and killed him, the statement said. It did not say what he had done that was threatening.
Ron Ely, 81, played the title character on the NBC series “Tarzan,” which ran from 1966 to 1968. He was host of the Miss America pageant in 1980 and 1981 and later married Valerie Ely, a former Miss Florida. The couple had three children.
There was no report of Ron Ely being injured. Authorities confirmed he was at the home during the stabbing and the shooting, and an earlier sheriff’s statement said an elderly man in the home was taken to a hospital for evaluation.
The home where the killings took place is one of two addresses listed in public records for Cameron Ely. It is not clear whether he had been living with his parents.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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