Officer-involved shooting in Lakewood

LAKEWOOD, Wash. — The Lakewood Police Department is investigating an officer-involved shooting that happened Wednesday at around 8 p.m. at 108th Street Southwest and 47th Avenue Southwest.

Lakewood police said  federal agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security, Customs Enforcement and the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms were conducting an undercover operation when they tried to stop the suspect they were targeting. 

Lakewood Police Lt. Chris Lawler said the driver of the car, a Hispanic man, did not comply with police commands and tried to flee, hitting a Homeland Security Investigations agent in the leg. The agent fired at the driver, hitting him.

According to ICE, the agent has worked with HSI for six years and has more than ten years of law enforcement experience. He was released from the hospital late Wednesday night and is expected to fully recover from his injuries.

Sources told KIRO 7 the suspect was hit once in the chest. Lawler said he was taken to a local hospital, where he was under guard on Thursday. He is reported to be in stable condition. 

An eyewitness said she heard a loud boom outside her apartment and rushed outside to find federal agents standing over the suspect.

"We heard this big old 'boom!'" said Danielle Roquette. "It was pretty much a gun sound and a car collision at the same time."

Roquette said she saw agents standing over the suspect seconds after the shooting and could see that he had been hit by a shotgun blast.

"Dude was on the floor, they just kept telling him don't move, get down," she said. "And then all of the sudden we started seeing them lift his shirt and stuff and blood just started coming out."

"Crazy, considering it was right in front of our door," Roquette said.

Another witness told KIRO 7 he heard what sounded like firecrackers as he was getting off a bus nearby.

When Vinnie Thompson took a closer look, he saw a bullet hole in the windshield of a car and police putting evidence markers on the road.

"Officers injured doesn't make me feel safe at all. Other people getting shot makes me feel queasy," said Thompson.

Another witness, JD, heard the gunshots and ran outside.

"We heard at least two, maybe three, gunshots. We came running down the street looking to make sure none of my homeboys got shot. There's a black Mustang over there, there's a bullet hole in it. I guess the cop shot the guy in the car," he said.

The investigation is being led by the Lakewood Police Department’s Major Crimes Unit and is being assisted by the Cooperative Cities Crime Response Unit Investigative Team.

KIRO