A Kent Police officer fired his gun but didn’t hit a wanted sexual assault suspect early Wednesday morning, Dec. 10 at the Indigo Springs Apartments in the 11100 block of SE 208th Street.
At about 3:14 a.m., the Seattle Police Department requested assistance from Kent Police to locate a 48-year-old Kent man wanted for a felony sexual assault and domestic violence assault, according to a Dec. 10 Kent Police news release. The man was believed to be in his apartment at Indigo Springs.
Multiple Kent officers were dispatched and quickly located the man’s unoccupied vehicle in the apartment parking lot, according to police.
Officers knocked on the man’s apartment door. The man reportedly quickly opened the door and pointed a handgun at the officers, according to police. One officer fired his service weapon at the suspect. The man retreated into his apartment and shut the door.
Kent officers set a protective perimeter around the unit, and Valley SWAT members were requested to respond to the scene, according to police. Officers attempted to call the suspect out of the apartment using their PA systems. He could be seen looking out at the officers but did not respond.
A short time after the PA announcements started, the man’s mother exited the apartment. She advised that her son was inside the unit alone.
Smoke was seen coming from the man’s unit, and his mother confirmed that their sprinkler system had been activated, according to police. Officers began evacuating adjacent apartments.
Puget Sound Fire responded to the scene. Fire personnel are investigating the cause of what was later determined to be a small fire in the unit, according to police.
Officers continued attempts to direct the man to exit the apartment. At 5:53 a.m., the man exited but did not comply with commands to surrender, according to police. A K-9 unit was utilized to contact the man, and he was taken into custody.
The man was not struck by gunfire, but sustained injuries from a K9 bite, according to police.
Kent Police did not release how many shots the officer fired at the man or if a gun was found on the man or inside hisapartment.
Due to its officer firing his weapon, Kent Police requested the Valley Independent Investigative Team to conduct the investigation and release any further information.
The Valley Independent Investigative Team is a multi-agency team of investigators from eight law enforcement agencies (Auburn, Des Moines, Federal Way, Kent, King County Sheriff’s Office, Renton, Port of Seattle and Tukwila). With Kent Police as the involved agency, its staff has been excluded from the investigation.
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