Man’s death in Kent warehouse ruled a homicide

Kent Police are under investigation after a 55-year-old Federal Way man died from multiple gunshot wounds June 5 in a Kent warehouse.

David Alan Peck died from multiple gunshot wounds and the manner of death was homicide, according to the King County Medical Examiner’s Office report on Tuesday, June 10. The medical examiner rules a death a homicide not as a legal conclusion, but when an action by one or more persons results in the death of a person.

Kent Police, in a June 5 news release about the incident, did not reveal whether officers, Peck or both fired shots during the incident at 6651 S. 216th Street. Because Kent officers were involved in the deadly incident, Kent Police turned the case over to the Valley Independent Investigation Team, which has not issued a media release about the shooting.

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.

One agency takes the lead in each case to investigate and to release information to the public. As of Tuesday afternoon, June 10, Kent Police have not responded to Kent Reporter emails to see which agency is leading the investigation.

The investigation team will eventually deliver its case to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for review and determination of charges, if any.

Kent Police reported that officers found a 55-year-old Federal Way man dead inside a Valley warehouse after responding to reports of threats with a weapon by a recently fired employee at a business in the 6600 block of South 216th Street.

Multiple 911 callers reported that Peck, a recently terminated employee, had entered the business, was brandishing a firearm and making threats toward employees, according to a June 5 Kent Police news release. It was also reported Peck was carrying a gas can while making the threats.

Officers arrived and located Peck inside the warehouse portion of the building. He was reported to be non-compliant by officers and holding a firearm at his side, according to police. Officers reported that a fire had been set in the rear of the warehouse.

Officers later confirmed that multiple fires had been started and announced their withdrawal from the warehouse. Shortly afterward, the radio traffic included the transmission, “Shots fired,” according to police. The news release did not report whether the suspect, officers or both fired shots. Kent Police did not respond to a Kent Reporter email about whether officers fired any shots.

As fire and smoke conditions worsened, and after confirming that all employees had safely evacuated, officers fully exited the warehouse, according to police.

Puget Sound Fire and King County medics were dispatched to assist.

Due to the heavy smoke and uncertainty about whether active fires remained inside, officers deployed a drone to assess the interior. Peck was located inside the warehouse, deceased.

Firefighters arrived at the warehouse at 10:24 a.m., according to an email from Puget Sound Fire spokesperson Pat Pawlak. Approximately 30 emergency personnel responded from Puget Sound Fire and King County Medic One.

Because of the armed suspect, firefighters were unable to enter the building until about 2:50 p.m., Pawlak said.

“The building was equipped with a fire sprinkler system, which had activated and controlled the fire,” Pawlak said. “Once firefighters were able to go inside, they extinguished some fire that was on shelving and numerous hotspots. Firefighters then worked on smoke removal so it would be safe for law enforcement to enter the building. This process took approximately 90 minutes.”