BREAKING: Wenatchee Cop Shot By Gunman Who Was Shooting At Church

Wenatchee, WA – One person was killed and a Wenatchee police officer was wounded on Saturday morning when officers responded to a “shots fired” call at a church in downtown Wenatchee.

The incident occurred at about 8:30 a.m. on May 7 when Wenatchee police officers responded to a 911 call about gunfire at the Living Hope Community Church located near the intersection of North Chelan Avenue and Palouse Street, Wenatchee World reported.

Living Hope Community Church is located almost directly across the street from Memorial Park, the major staging area for the Washington State Apple Blossom Festival Food Fair and Arts Crafts Fair, which is in its last weekend of events, KPQ reported.

Vendors were setting up for the day when the mayhem began.

Don and Rodelie Ross, from Montana, were setting up their vendor booth about 200 feet away when they heard gunfire at the church, Wenatchee World.

“First we heard a big load of shots and we thought, ‘What’s going on?’” Rodelie Ross said. “And then when I look, I saw that guy yelling and cussing and breaking the window.”

She said she told her husband to watch just as the gunman shot the church’s window again, Wenatchee World reported.

“So I was really alarmed, like ‘Oh my God, he has a gun,’” Rodelie Ross said.

Don Ross said the gunman was “shooting at the door and then kicking it and then cussing and then shooting at it again and then really kicking at it, trying to get in,” Wenatchee World reported.

The couple called 911.

“I dialed 911 and I gave it to him,” Rodelie Ross said. “I was hiding there because I’m scared that, you know, he’s going to come here and try to shoot my husband.”

The first two officers to arrive on the scene were on bicycles, Wenatchee World reported.

Rodelie Ross said the male and female officers “told the guy to, you know, ‘put your gun down.’”

“I saw the guy try to put his gun down but he got it back again,” she said.

Rodelie Ross said it looked like the gunman was reloading, Wenatchee World reported.

“He’s shooting the police officers and the police officers is firing back,” she explained.

“It was really quick. Like, he just got down really quick,” Rodelie Ross added.

Her husband told roughly the same story, Wenatchee World reported.

“The police arrived and they told him to put the pistol down, and he didn’t comply,” Don Ross said. “And so there was two of them that fired at him and he went down instantly.”

He said one of the officers was shot in the leg “from him shooting back,” Wenatchee World reported.

Don Ross said he saw the man “trying to raise [the gun] up and they shot him when he started raising it up.”

The witnesses said it appeared the gunman was killed instantly.

Don Ross said the gunman appeared to be about 40 years old, Wenatchee World reported.

“He was dressed very nicely, nice pants, had a tie on,” he said.

The suspect was fatally shot in the exchange, according to KPQ.

The wounded officer was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment.

Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to the scene to assist with the investigation, including the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, and the Washington State Patrol.

Officials have not released any details about the wounded hero’s medical condition.

Wenatchee police have not yet publicly identified the officer who was shot.

Police have not yet released any information on the person who was fatally shot during the incident.

This is a developing story and we will keep you updated. For all of our updates, follow us on Facebook and go to your news feed preferences under your settings, then select that you want to see more of The Police Tribune’s posts in your news feed. Otherwise, Facebook may not show you updates.