Gunman kills himself at South Tahoe ski resort

Part of Heavenly Mountain Resort was shut off to hikers for the better part of Friday because a gunman was on the mountain.

A 25-year-old Fremont man eventually shot himself July 12. Lake Tahoe News is not publishing the man’s name.

El Dorado County sheriff’s deputies get suited up July 12. Photo/Provided

The man had posted a video on Facebook with a message to his family and the GPS coordinates of where he could be found. Friends alerted law enforcement that the Iraq war veteran was suicidal and left his residence with a .308-caliber rifle, .45-caliber handgun and military backpack.

Because El Dorado County sheriff’s deputies knew the type of weapons he had on him and that he was an ex-Marine, they approached the incident as though it could have been a possible ambush.

A resident in the area told Lake Tahoe News just before 4pm a helicopter was circling the California Lodge at least seven times. The California Highway Patrol helicopter spotted the man in a wooded area off Sherman Way in South Lake Tahoe.

By 5pm there was no visible evidence law enforcement had been in the area and people were boarding the Heavenly tram for a wedding – perhaps unaware of the events that unfolded earlier in the day. Heavenly deferred all comment to the sheriff’s department.

 — Lake Tahoe News staff report