Man shoots wife, boyfriend and kills self

A 35-year-old man from Pollock Pines apparently committed suicide after he shot his estranged wife and her boyfriend.

The shooter, who has been tentatively identified as Michael Shawn Hunter, brought a shotgun to a residence on Red Robin Road in Pleasant Valley, an area about 15 miles southeast of Placerville, where he reportedly wounded Elizabeth Hunter, 35, of Pollock Pines, and Michael Vitko, 36, of Placerville, with birdshot Thursday around 4:50 p.m.

An El Dorado County Sheriff's deputy said Elizabeth Hunter was in her car when the incident occurred. Paramedics took the two to Marshall Hospital where they were treated and released.

After the shooting, Michael Hunter drove to a remote area in the southern part of El Dorado County. A deputy on patrol spotted his car on Cosumnes Mine Road between Grizzly Flat Road and North South Road, but the vehicle eluded him. A deputy caught up with Hunter after a neighbor, who had been following the incident on a police scanner, called and told authorities that he had just seen the car.

Almost immediately, the deputy and Hunter exchanged fire. A deputy said Hunter was found dead in his car possibly of a self-inflicted wound. The shooting is under investigation.