According to the Sky Valley Chronicle the suspect was taken into custody at 4:30 AM this morning after breaking into an unoccupied home. A police officer fired upon the individual the evening before when the suspect allegedly rammed his truck into a police car and then fled on foot in the Dockton area of Maury Island. The series of events was triggered by numerous concerned calls to police concerning the suspect’s behavior over the past few days, which was described as “erratic.”
Residents were on high alert as several police helicopters and multiple squad cars from several jurisdictions swept search lights over the heavily-wooded areas near where the suspect was last seen. Neighbors advised each other to lock their doors and turn on their exterior lights. In a community where many feel safe and secure, locking the doors is not necessarily a common practice.
Many residents turned to a handful of community Facebook groups to stay abreast of the news, as details were scarce in the network news given the rural nature of the island. Friends and neighbors kept each other abreast of the situation through social media. Extra police support was brought on-island as the manhunt got underway. The officers involved called in a hostage negotiator as a precaution. The suspect was apparently unarmed and on foot, which mitigated the need for a SWAT team..
When the writer spoke to the officers they were hopeful to bring a peaceful resolution to what they perceived as a mental health crisis. According to several sources the suspect displayed increasingly erratic behavior in the days leading up to the incident and on the day of the incident a number of calls to the police were made by concerned citizens.
These calls did not lead to direct police action.
Police became involved after a domestic dispute, allegedly between the suspect and his mother, which led to a 911 call. No injuries were reported during the apprehension, although the suspect was subdued by a taser gun deployed by an officer.
The officer who fired the gunshots during the car-ramming incident has been suspended pending an investigation, per police policy. It was a long night for Maury Island residents and the loved ones and concerned friends of the suspect, who is reported as being safe in
custody.
Author: Vashon Island
Vashon is an Island located between Tacoma and West Seattle. This account manages the vashon-maury.com website full on useful information for residents and visitors of the Island.
