Friday, Seattle Police received a 911 call from a man who stated his juvenile daughter told him someone with a wooden stick was trying to break into their home.
Police arrived around 11:30 a.m. to the 8400 block of 5th Avenue Southwest, but the juvenile was too afraid to answer the door for officers. While still outside, police heard loud banging noises coming from inside the home. In fear for the life safety of the juvenile, officers breached the front door to make entry and began to search for the 17-year-old female victim and the suspect.
The male suspect was located first inside the homeowner’s vehicle in the garage. Officers observed he had a gas can and a hammer in his lap. When asked to exit the vehicle, the suspect began drinking gasoline out of the container.
Officers gave multiple commands for the suspect to exit the vehicle, but he refused and continued to consume more gasoline. With the suspect endangering his own life and the hazard the gasoline created, police broke the driver side window and removed the man from the driver seat.
The suspect resisted officers while they pulled him out of the vehicle, but he was eventually taken into custody. Seattle Fire provided aid to the suspect at the scene.
Once the suspect was in custody, officers found the female victim on the second floor of the home and escorted her out to safety.
The 40-year-old male suspect was arrested for residential burglary and was booked into King County Jail.