Seattle police said they found a stockpile of weapons and body armor in the home of a Queen Anne man who was fatally shot by police Saturday night after he fired on officers.
Police said they were called to the residence in the 300 block of West Prospect Street, which is one of many large, nicely landscaped houses on the street overlooking Elliott Bay, around 10:30p.m. on Saturday after receiving reports of gunfire.
As officers arrived at the home, they heard additional gunfire and saw a man brandishing a weapon, police said.
Police say they have had previous encounters with the man.
Seattle police spokesman Patrick Michaud said the gunman retreated into his house through the front door when he saw officers arrive but then re-emerged and fired on them.
Two rifle-equipped and trained officers, who had taken positions near the front of the house, shot the man, police said. The wounded man crawled back into his house, out of view of the officers, police said.
Over the next several hours, SWAT officers attempted in vain to make contact with the suspect, police said.
A robot that was eventually sent into the building helped determine that the man died of his injuries, police said. SWAT officers entered the home and found multiple firearms, including semi-automatic rifles, shotguns and body armor, near the front door, police said.
No one else was injured during this incident.
Police did not say if they knew what the suspect was shooting at just before the officers' arrival. On Sunday morning, however, K9 units trained to detect ballistics were searching the area in front of the house.
After the shooting, Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O'Toole and members of the Office of Professional Accountability arrived to observe the investigation.
Police said that in accordance with department policy, both officers involved in the shooting have been placed on paid administrative leave.
Michaud said on Sunday that police would not release more information on the shooting or the gunman until Monday.
According to several neighbors, none of whom wished to be named, the man, his wife and their adult daughter had moved into the home only a few months ago.
Property records show the house sold for $2.2 million in June 2013.
Neighbors said they knew little about the man. One said he walked his dog regularly, another said he gave money to a neighbor child's fundraising efforts for animal welfare and a third said she heard the new neighbor had expressed anger about the way people parked on the street.
Neighbor Camilla Hyde, 10, who was given permission by her parents to speak with the media, said she was at home with her father on Saturday night when she heard what originally sounded like firecrackers.
When she and her father looked outside, they saw police arriving, she said. Soon, officers in riot gear told them to go back inside and lock the door, she said.
On Sunday, she baked cookies and made lemonade for investigators, who still had the street cordoned off until early afternoon, and for neighbors.
She called it "stress baking" and said she did it to relieve her own anxiety and be helpful to others.
Copyright 2014 - The Seattle Times
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
