UPDATE AT 10:09 A.M.: Man shot and killed in Pullman by SWAT team following standoff; WSP official says no connection to Moscow murders is apparent
UPDATE AT 10:09 A.M.:
The man who was shot and killed in a standoff situation in Pullman early this morning doesn't appear to have any connection to the murder of four University of Idaho students Nov. 13, according to Chris Loftis of the Washington State Patrol.
WSP is handling the investigation into the Pullman incident since it wasn't involved in it.
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UPDATE AT 8:58 A.M.:
The shooting death of a man who barricaded himself in his Pullman apartment occurred at 4:23 a.m. today, according to Chris Loftis, director of communications for the Washington State Patrol.
Loftis also said WSP will provide the man's name and make a statement about the incident this afternoon.
During the standoff, 28 residents of the apartment complex where the incident occurred -- 20 of them students and eight nonstudents -- were evacuated, according to Phil Weiler, vice president for marketing and communications at Washington State University.
Those evacuated were first taken to Beasley Coliseum but were later moved to the WSU Student Recreation Center so they could have access to showers. Weiler said they will be in WSU's care until the investigation is over and they can go home.
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ORIGINAL POST:
A man in his 30s was shot and killed by a member of the Whitman County Regional SWAT Team following a standoff at his apartment Wednesday night, according to a Pullman Police Department news release distributed this morning.
The incident began when the man reportedly threatened to kill his roommates at their apartment on the 1000 block of Latah Street. Pullman police were called to the scene at 8:37 p.m. Wednesday for a "weapon offense," according to the news release.
The roommates were evacuated from the apartment and Pullman officers attempted to speak with the man, but he barricaded himself inside the apartment, according to the news release.
The Pullman police crisis negotiators and Whitman County Regional SWAT Team responded to the scene. The man allegedly began firing from his apartment, and the area was evacuated, according to the news release.
"After unsuccessful negotiations, escalating behavior and continued danger to the public and officers, the male was shot by a member of the Whitman County Regional SWAT Team," the news release said. "The suspect was found deceased when the Whitman County Regional SWAT Team cleared the apartment."
The Washington State Patrol will now investigate the incident because it was an officer-involved shooting. Washington state law requires an independent agency to investigate incidents in which deadly force is used, according to the news release.
The Whitman County Regional SWAT Team is made up of officers from Whitman County Sheriff’s Office, Pullman Police Department and WSU Police Department, according to the news release signed by Pullman police Chief Jake Opgenorth.
