SEATTLE — Seattle police have arrested a man who they say chased his roommate around with a hatchet before locking himself in his apartment.
According to SPD, just before 3 p.m., officers responded to an area near N. 87th St and Greenwood Ave N. in Seattle’s Greenwood neighborhood for reports of an assault with a hatchet.
A 46-year-old said his 37-year-old roommate chased him with a hatchet earlier that day, around 7 a.m., and that he reported it. He said his roommate ran off and that when he returned to the apartment later, his roommate tried to assault him again, SPD said.
The victim told police that the suspect chased him through the apartment, and that he had to hide in a bedroom. The victim also told police that the suspect had “chopped partially through the door with the hatchet,” according to SPD.
The victim ran off and called police.
When police responded, the suspect barricaded himself in his apartment, SPD said.
The suspect did not engage with negotiators, so a SWAT team was called in to take him into custody.
The man was booked into King County Jail for felony assault.
Seattle Fire told KIRO 7 that pepper spray had been deployed in the apartment complex and that crews were airing out the building.
No injuries were reported by those in the building. Seattle Fire said the suspect had minor injuries from the pepper spray, but didn’t require hospitalization.