Court documents outline relation between man killed in police shooting, man arrested in standoff

Court documents have provided more detail about the connection between a man who allegedly threatened to shoot state employees and a fatal shooting at a Sioux Falls Burger King.

Elliot Lincoln Jay Bird, 27, of Sioux Falls, was arrested around 12:45 a.m. Friday after an almost eight-hour-long standoff with law enforcement.

Jay Bird was wanted on a $250,000 warrant for making terroristic threats against state employees, including law-enforcement officers, according to court documents.

The affidavit in support of Jay Bird's arrest states he told a man at a gas station "he was going to kill someone from the city because they killed his brother (Tuesday night)."

While Jay Bird referenced the person killed by police as his brother, a familiar tie has not been confirmed by police. Police chief Jon Thum said Jacob James, 21, was shot and killed by gunfire from a Sioux Falls police officer and a Minnehaha County sheriff's deputy after James had fired an undisclosed number of shots at them while trying to flee a traffic stop in a Burger King parking lot.

The 27-year-old was first reported to police Wednesday morning for approaching a group of men regarding their commercial license plates. He asked if they were state employees before firing a shot in the air with a shotgun, according to police.

More Argus911: Sioux Falls police arrest shooting suspect, one other after multi-hour standoff.

Wanted posters were shared via social media from multiple state and local agencies regarding Jay Bird's threats. The South Dakota Department of Public Safety said the suspect was involved in the Tuesday afternoon officer-involved shooting that left James dead.

Police on Friday said there was some relation between James and Jay Bird but could not confirm what it was.

In a statement to the Argus Leader, James' family said they would allow the 21-year-old's friends to comment on him but the family would refrain from making a public comment until the conclusion of the investigation by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation.

Got a story idea from your community? Email reporter Alfonzo Galvan at agalvan@argusleader.com or follow him on Twitter @GalvanReports.