Suspect dies in police custody, investigation underway in Tacoma

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Trooper, police activity in South Tacoma

At about 8:00 p.m. Tuesday night, there was a lot of police activity on Pacific and S 84th St. in Tacoma. The Washington State Patrol and Lakewood Police will release more information as an investigation continues.

An investigation is underway in Tacoma after an armed suspect died while in Police custody Tuesday night.

According to the Washington State Patrol (WSP), at around 7:40 p.m., a trooper tried stopping a red Ford truck near the corner of S 37th St. and Pacific Ave. The driver swerved, almost hit a pedestrian and ran a red light. This led the trooper to believe that the driver was impaired. 

The trooper says when he started chasing the suspect down Pacific Ave., the suspect veered onto the sidewalk, traveling at speeds of 40 mph. The driver then turned around in the opposite direction, and turned east on 84th St. 

Authorities say at that moment, the driver either jumped or was ejected from his truck, which ended up smashing into a light pole, causing it to fall onto the south side of the AM/PM gas station.

The WSP says several other troopers arrived to the scene and observed the suspect waiving a knife. The driver was not cooperating, so authorities subdued him, and took him into custody with the help of the Tacoma Police Department (TPD).

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Firefighters responded to the scene and attempted to treat the suspect, but he started kicking at them and other officers. Within minutes, the driver stopped breathing.

Firefighters immediately began performing CPR on the suspect, but he was unable to be revived and was pronounced dead at the scene.

At the request of the WSP, the Pierce County Force Investigation Team will take control of this investigation.

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This is a developing story.