Police shoot person of interest in Seattle officer's murder


Medics wheel the wounded man to an ambulance as officers with weapons drawn provide cover.

By KOMO Staff

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TUKWILA, Wash. -- Just after a memorial service for slain Seattle police Officer Tim Brenton concluded Friday afternoon, officers shot and arrested a man described as a person of interest in his killing.
Tukwila police spokesman Mike Murphy said investigators were following up leads on the murder at an apartment complex when the man flashed a handgun and was shot by three Seattle detectives.
"Seattle PD detectives were out here, following up on a person of interest in the Officer Brenton homicide, and this person of interest ran, and was shot as he ran from the scene," Murphy said. "They had to fire to protect themselves."
The man, who Murphy said is in his 30s, was loaded onto a stretcher and rushed to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle where he was listed in critical condition and being rushed into surgery.
Police surrounded the apartment complex in the 14300 block of 56th Ave South to make sure no one else is inside, and say it's now clear for other residents to go back in.
Federal Way officers responding to the scene to help arrested another person wanted in the case at a nearby park-n-ride lot. No further details were available regarding that arrest.
Officials said a tip from the public led them to the apartment.
Asked if anyone else was being sought, Murphy said, "we feel that as far as suspects, we don't think there's anybody else that we're looking for."
Brenton was shot to death Saturday night as he sat in a parked patrol car in the city's Central District neighborhood, reviewing a traffic stop with rookie officer Britt Sweeney.
Sweeney was grazed by several bullets and returned fire.
Police on Thursday said a dash cam inside Brenton's patrol car snapped a photo of the car believed to be that of the gunman, and they released the picture publicly.
Video from AIR 4 over the scene of the shooting showed a car parked in the lot that appeared to match the general shape of the wanted vehicle, but a car cover concealed the top of the car.
"The car matches the general description, but it's too early to say we've got the car," Murphy said.