Police shoot, kill child rape suspect after he stabs officer, investigators say

CHEHALIS, Wash. — A 32-year-old man wanted for child rape was fatally shot by Centralia police officers after the man stabbed a police officer in the head and back, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office said in a release.

Investigators said it all started at about 10:15 a.m. Friday when Pierce County detectives tried to arrest the man near a home in the 400 block of Northeast Adams Avenue in Chehalis.

The rape suspect appeared to reach for a weapon and that is when a Pierce County detective fired their gun, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office said.

The man ran away but was tracked by a police K-9 in the 100 block of Southwest Alfred Street in Chehalis at about 12:15 p.m.

A Centralia police officer tried to contact the man, but he stabbed the officer in the head and back, investigators said.

Officials said other Centralia police officers fired their guns, striking the man.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene after lifesaving measures were performed, investigators said.

Officials said the officer who was stabbed was taken to the hospital and had to undergo surgery. He is in stable condition.

The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the shooting but will be assisted by the Chehalis Police Department, the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office, the Mason County Sheriff’s Office and Washington State Patrol.

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