As The Seattle Police Department continues its commitment to transparency, and in accordance with department policy, we are releasing bodyworn video from an officer-involved shooting on April 17 in Tukwila. The incident led to the death of a suspect and an officer with a graze wound.
The shooting happened at about 3:14 p.m. during an undercover Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce operation at a hotel in the 16500 block of Southcenter Parkway. The taskforce was conducting a sting on a suspected child predator.
Police had probable cause to arrest the 67-year-old suspect. He thought he was meeting two young girls, just 7 and 11 years old inside a room. As three officers intercepted him and tried to take him into custody, he produced a gun. One of the officers grabbed for that gun. It was fired. Two officers fired their guns at the suspect. He was pronounced dead.
One of the officers involved suffered a graze wound. He was treated for a minor injury and was not transported to the hospital.
The Crime Scene Investigation Unit processed the scene for evidence.
The Tukwila Police Department is investigating the assault on the officers.
Meanwhile, The Seattle Police Department Force Investigation Team continues to thoroughly review what happened, which is standard protocol.
We take these incidents seriously and understand transparency is key. This is SPD’s first officer-involved shooting in eight months and it is the first officer-involved shooting ending with a death in 23 months. Any time there is a loss of life, it is devastating to our community.
FIT, CSI, the Office of Police Accountability, the Wellness Unit and Office of the Inspector General all joined on the scene.
The officers involved will be placed on paid administrative leave as the investigation is underway. This is also standard protocol.
The Seattle Police Department is the lead agency for the Washington Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce. The WA ICAC TF is a multi-jurisdictional group of agencies dedicated to the protection of children from sexual abuse and exploitation.
Since 2019, Internet Crimes Against Children CyberTips in Washington state have risen 250 percent. The WA ICAC TF also reports child enticement cases in our state increased 76 percent in 2023 compared to 2022.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children says in 2023, its CyberTipline received 36,210,368 reports of suspected child sexual exploitation. That’s compared to 29,397,681 in 2021.
For our officers, these situations are dangerous, unpredictable and can escalate rapidly, as seen in the video we’ve shared.
The Seattle Police Department will release more information as it becomes available.
Anyone who has more information about this incident is encouraged to call the Force Investigation Team at (206) 684-9292.
Incident Number: 2024-103897
Officers Involved: Adam Fowler and Nick French