A 38-year-old Oak Harbor man fired at police, kidnapped a 64-year-old man at gunpoint, shot a driver who gave him a ride, and led law enforcement on a chase across three counties before being killed by police Friday morning.
The rampage began shortly after 6 p.m. on January 1 when the Island County Sheriff’s Office responded to a domestic dispute in the 3800 block of French Road in Clinton.
The initial report indicated an argument between a man and a woman, with the man possibly having a gun. A deputy from the Island County Sheriff’s Department and an officer from the Langley Police Department arrived at the scene.
Upon their approach, the suspect fired at the officers, prompting one officer to return fire. The suspect then fled into a nearby wooded area. No one was injured in the exchange of gunfire.
The suspect was identified as the 38-year-old man from Oak Harbor. Island County Sheriff Felici requested assistance from the Skagit Island Multiple Agency Response Team to investigate the incident.
Later that evening, around 7 p.m., the Oak Harbor Police Department responded to a kidnapping report in the 100 block of Southwest Lansdale Street in Oak Harbor.
A 64-year-old man reported that the same suspect from the earlier shooting entered his residence, brandished a gun, and demanded to be driven to Burlington. The victim complied and dropped the suspect off at an unknown location in Burlington, unharmed.
This was reported at approximately 10:15 p.m., meaning the 64-year-old likely spent hours under the suspect’s control before being released.
The situation escalated further when, at 12:15 a.m. on January 2, the Burlington Police Department received an anonymous tip that the suspect was at a residence in the 1200 block of Kendra Lane.
Officers surveilled the area and, at about 4:15 a.m., observed a vehicle leaving the residence.
Believing the suspect was inside, they stopped the car in the 1200 block of South Anacortes Street.
The suspect, seated as a passenger, shot the driver, who sustained a non-life-threatening injury. The suspect then commandeered the vehicle and fled.
Officers gave first aid to the injured driver, who was taken to Skagit Valley Hospital, whilst others pursued the suspect.
The chase extended into Snohomish County, where the suspect was shot and killed by police during a confrontation. This final encounter is under investigation by the Snohomish County SMART team.
The 10-hour timeline from the 6 p.m. domestic dispute to the early morning death demonstrates a suspect spiralling through increasingly desperate and violent actions. Each encounter involved firearms, each put additional lives at risk, and the violence escalated with each incident.
The initial domestic dispute firing at police shows the suspect was willing to shoot law enforcement from the very beginning. Officers responding to domestic calls already face extreme danger, but this suspect opened fire immediately upon their approach.
The suspect fleeing into wooded areas after firing at police created a manhunt situation in darkness. Officers couldn’t pursue into the woods without risking ambush, forcing them to establish perimeters whilst the suspect escaped.
The 7 p.m. kidnapping in Oak Harbor, roughly an hour after the Clinton shooting, means the suspect travelled approximately 20 miles whilst being sought by law enforcement. How he avoided detection during that time whilst moving between jurisdictions remains unclear.
The 64-year-old victim entering his residence to find an armed stranger demanding transportation represents terrifying home invasion. The victim complied, driving the suspect to Burlington under threat of death, a journey that likely took 30 to 45 minutes.
The victim reporting the kidnapping at 10:15 p.m., hours after dropping the suspect in Burlington, suggests either the suspect held him longer than the drive required or the victim was too traumatised to immediately contact police.
The anonymous tip at 12:15 a.m. directing police to a Kendra Lane residence indicates someone knew where the suspect was hiding. Whether this was a concerned resident, someone the suspect contacted, or someone he’d threatened remains unknown.
The four-hour surveillance from 12:15 a.m. to 4:15 a.m. shows police being methodical rather than rushing in. They waited for the suspect to emerge, likely to avoid a barricaded suspect situation or hostage scenario.
The vehicle leaving at 4:15 a.m. carrying the suspect as a passenger means someone was driving him, unaware or complicit in harbouring a fugitive who’d already shot at police and kidnapped someone.
The suspect shooting his driver after police stopped the vehicle represents the most shocking escalation. The person who’d been helping him, whether voluntarily or under duress, became his victim when police intervened.
The driver sustaining non-life-threatening injuries means the bullet missed vital organs despite close-range shooting inside a vehicle. The driver’s survival was fortunate given the confined space and suspect’s demonstrated willingness to kill.
The suspect commandeering the vehicle after shooting the driver shows desperation. Rather than surrender or flee on foot, he left the wounded driver bleeding in the street and took the car.
Officers providing first aid to the driver whilst others pursued demonstrates the difficult triage decisions law enforcement faces. Some had to stay with the bleeding victim whilst knowing the armed suspect was escaping.
The chase extending into Snohomish County means the suspect drove south from Burlington, possibly attempting to reach Seattle or simply fleeing in panic with no destination.
The final confrontation where police shot and killed the suspect hasn’t been detailed. Whether he fired at officers again, pointed his weapon at them, or created other deadly threat will be examined by the SMART team investigation.
The three different investigative teams, Skagit Island Multiple Agency Response Team for the Clinton shooting, and Snohomish County SMART for the final shooting, reflects the multi-jurisdictional nature spanning Island, Skagit, and Snohomish counties.
