Sacramento County Animal Control Officer Slain in Galt, Suspect in Custody

A Sacramento County Animal Control officer was killed in an unprovoked attack at a home in Galt, authorities say.

The officer, identified by the Sacramento County Coronor's Office as 45-year-old Roy Curtis Marcum of Elk Grove, arrived at the home with a bank employee around noon Thursday.

The home in the 600 block of 1st Street was supposed to be vacant, as the resident had been evicted the previous day. Marcum was there to take custody of animals that had been left behind in the eviction, authorities say.

As soon as the pair arrived, resident Joseph Corey, 65, fired a shotgun through the closed front door, killing Marcum and grazing the bank employee, according to a Sacramento County Sheriff's Department press release.

Marcum was taken to a nearby church where paramedics attempted to save him, but they were unsuccessful.

A 17-hour standoff with Corey ensued, with negotiations and tear gas failing to drive him out of the home. Nearby homes were evacuated, and a SWAT team made up of officers from Elk Grove and Galt took command of the incident. Around 5 a.m., the suspect moved from the home into the garage, where officers were waiting.

"As the suspect arrived in the garage area, officers deployed a Taser device, at which time the suspect attempted to retreat back into the living quarters," the sheriff's department said in a press release. "Officers caught him and took him into custody, without injury to the suspect or themselves."

Anyone with information on this incident is asked to call the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau at (916) 874-5115.