Police said the rangers apparently confronted attackers who jumped a fence at the government building shortly after midnight, leading to the shootout in which one of the invaders also was wounded. The attackers then forced a gate open and fled, taking a car and gun from one of the rangers.

A witness' telephone call led police to arrest three suspects, one of whom was hospitalized with a gunshot wound. Officers said they found the gun of one of the slain guards in the suspects' car.

Both the FBI and police from the US Caribbean territory were investigating the case.