Suspect who shot, injured deputy found dead in Spanaway storage unit

SPANAWAY, Wash. -- A heavily armed, 27-year-old man who reportedly had been threatening people in Spanaway shot and slightly injured a Pierce County sheriff's deputy and then holed up inside a commercial storage unit Tuesday as SWAT teams surrounded it.  He was later found dead inside.

Pierce County Sheriff's Department spokesman Ed Troyer said the injured deputy was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital, where he was treated and released.  According to officials, the bullet hit the deputy in his protective vest, then ricocheted from his vest to his forearm. The deputy had some abrasions to his forearm.

The incident began when police received reports of a man threatening people in the 21600 block of Mountain Highway E. in Spanaway.  Police confronted the suspect at the Garage Plus Storage there, and that's when he opened fire.  Police fired back and the man took cover inside one of the storage units, pulling down the metal door, Troyer said.

Hours later, the sheriff's department said the suspect was found dead. It was not immediately know if he killed himself or if he died from wounds suffered in the exchange of fire with police.

Troyer added that the gunman had an SKS semi-automatic rifle and another rifle similar to an AK-47.