Federal Drug Agents Kill Man In Sedro-Woolley
Authorities said the man, sought for questioning in a methamphetamine-trafficking case, failed to comply with agents' commands.
Agents fired multiple rounds when the man pointed a handgun at a Drug Enforcement Administration agent, said Rodney Benson, special agent in charge of the DEA's Seattle field office.
He declined to say whether the slain man fired his weapon. "There was a weapon that was pointed at the agent," Benson said.
The dead man was identified as Jose Manuel Villa-Garcia, 28, said county Coroner Bruce Bacon. The cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head, Bacon said.
"That's a tragedy when there is injury or loss of life," Benson said. "Other than the suspect, no one else was injured."
Asked about drugs at the scene, Benson said he believed several pounds of meth in powder form were found at the house.
Asked how the officers gained entry to the house, and if officers' clothing identified them as law enforcement, DEA spokesman Jeffrey Eig said, "We're not going to be able to comment on that issue right now."
There were other people in the home, including children, but no one else was hurt, said Skagit County sheriff's Chief Criminal Deputy Will Reichardt.
Deputies and other members of the county's anti-drug task force were at the scene. No local investigators fired their guns, Reichardt said.
The shooting occurred at a duplex on what neighbors described as a quiet cul-de-sac. The town is about 60 miles north of Seattle.
The sheriff's office was investigating the shooting because it occurred in the unincorporated county. The DEA is conducting an internal review, Benson said, and the Washington State Patrol also is investigating.