SEATTLE — Seattle police say a man armed with an axe confronted members of a city work crew as they picked up trash at a homeless camp Tuesday afternoon.
Investigators said the man, who lived at the camp, charged the work crew, yelled racial slurs, threats, and swung the axe at one of the crew members, narrowly missing his chest.
The crew retreated and Seattle Police Department West Precinct officers tried to speak to the man, who was believed to be in his tent. SPD’s Hostage Negotiation Team and Crisis Response Team arrived to help.
It turned out that neither the suspect nor the axe was found inside his tent.
Though the man was not found, others who live at the camp said the suspect was likely to later return to his tent.