Northern California woman tried to kill roommate but gun jammed, police say

A Mendocino County woman is facing attempted murder charges after authorities say she tried to rob her roommate, struck him with a rifle, and then pulled the trigger, only for the gun to jam.

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On Friday, June 26, at about 11 a.m., deputies were called to the 23600 block of Biggar Lane in Covelo, an unincorporated community in a remote part of northeastern Mendocino County, for a reported assault. There, they found a 44-year-old man who said his roommate, Abigail Sanchez-Santos, 39, had entered his bedroom with a rifle and hit him with it, according a news release from the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office.

Sanchez-Santos then allegedly tried to take his belongings. During the alleged robbery, she moved him “towards the outside of the residence,” threatened to kill him and pulled the trigger, deputies said. The rifle malfunctioned and did not go off, deputies said. The man escaped and called police for help. He was treated for superficial injuries that matched his account, according to the release.

Deputies returned to the property and called out to Sanchez-Santos, who “surrendered peacefully,” deputies said. She was with a 31-year-old man at the time, the sheriff’s office said.

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Investigators obtained a search warrant and recovered a rifle they suspect she used in the alleged assault. Sanchez-Santos was booked on charges of attempted murder, attempted robbery, kidnapping, criminal threats and possession of an assault weapon and is being held on $1 million bail. The man who was with her was booked on the weapons charge alone.