Seattle police officer fatally shoots man armed with knife

A Seattle police officer fatally shot a man Monday afternoon after he ignored orders to drop a knife and advanced toward the officer, police said.

Police spokeswoman Renee Witt said the officer was driving his patrol car south on Boren Avenue near Howell Street about 4:15 p.m. when he saw a man holding a knife who was seated on a short wall on the northwest corner of the intersection. The man appeared to be whittling a piece of wood, Witt said.

The officer, who thought the man was acting strangely, stopped his patrol car and got out, Witt said.

The man stood up and advanced toward the officer, ignoring several "loud commands" to stop and drop the knife, Witt said.

At that point, the officer fired "several shots," said Witt, who did not know how many times the officer fired.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene.

The names of the officer and the dead man were not released Monday. The officer is from the department's West Precinct, Witt said.

Witt said she did not know the size of the knife the man had been holding.

A man who gave his name as Bonk Hyta, 29, who was at a hotel near the scene but did not witness the shooting, said he heard "five quick shots."

Kris Cruz was on the seventh floor of the Metro West building, just east of the shooting scene, when he heard three loud bangs. Cruz said he thought it was construction noise — but said a co-worker "in the cubicle next to mine" dropped to the floor.

"I was just chatting to him and he hit the ground," Cruz said. "It just didn't sound at all to me like gunshots, but he was right."

About an hour after the shooting, an agitated, disheveled man walked up to the scene demanding to see his "street brother," apparently referring to the dead man.

"I want to see my street brother for the last time," the man shouted at officers.

As he became increasingly agitated, officers asked him to step back onto the sidewalk.

At least one officer drew his gun. When the man appeared to pull an object from his pocket, officers wrestled him to the ground and handcuffed him. He was taken away in a patrol car.

The object, which fell to the ground, appeared to be a green pepper.

Seattle Police Chief John Diaz arrived at the scene and said he planned to speak with detectives as well as the officer involved in the shooting. He said police would hold a news conference Tuesday morning to release more details.

Diaz said the officer involved in the shooting is considered a good officer with a good record.

The fatal shooting was the second involving a Seattle police officer this month.

On Aug. 16, Ariel Rosenfeld, 43, was fatally shot after he reportedly pulled a handgun on officers who had gone to his workplace at the QFC in Wedgwood to arrest him. He was wanted on a warrant for allegedly choking his mother.

The officer who shot Rosenfeld, Chris Anderson, has been placed on paid administrative leave while police investigate the shooting, as have two officers who wrestled with Rosenfeld before the shooting. None of the officers was injured.

After Monday's shooting, police blocked surrounding streets, snarling downtown rush-hour traffic.

Sara Jean Green: 206-515-5654 or sgreen@seattletimes.com

Steve Miletich: 206-464-3302 or smiletich@seattletimes.com