Authorities in Pennsylvania say a man killed three police officers after ambushing them outside his ex-girlfriend’s farmhouse. He wore camouflage clothing and attacked after the woman had asked for protection from him.
The man, who was killed by officers in York County, Pa., on Wednesday, Sept. 17, has been identified as Matthew James Ruth, the Associated Press reported, citing court documents.
The officers who died have not been named publicly.
Police say that before the shooting, Ruth faced stalking charges after his ex-girlfriend said she saw him near her house. He had also been charged with trespassing and loitering or prowling at night, according to online court records filed earlier on Wednesday.
Police say these charges were part of a domestic-related investigation from the day before, per AP.
The resident of the farmhouse is Ruth’s ex-girlfriend, CNN reported.
In a probable cause affidavit, police said the woman reported seeing a man on her property “with binoculars looking into the residence through a window” on Tuesday, WGAL reported.
The woman also said her pickup truck had been set on fire in August and she suspected Ruth was behind it.
She told police she dated him briefly but had never invited him to her home.
A neighbor of Ruth’s told the AP that she remembers him doing fundraising for the Boy Scouts, but no other details about him were immediately available.
