TUMWATER, Wash. — An armed civilian took down a shooter after at least two people were shot Sunday night at a Washington state Walmart, police said.
Tumwater police said the civilian, described by officers as a good Samaritan, shot and killed the suspect at the scene.
On Monday night, KIRO 7 confirmed the civilian is a pastor and works with the Oakville Fire Department, where he is a lieutenant and an emergency medical technician.
The shooting happened just after 5:30 p.m. at the Walmart Supercenter in Tumwater, about 65 miles south of Seattle.
“I heard two bangs. It sounded like gunshots to me,” witness Robert Berwick said. "I looked down the aisle and saw a person running.”
That’s when Berwick ran, too. There was chaos in the parking lot, and he said the shooting suspect tried to carjack another man. That’s when the suspect was shot.
“I thanked him for saving my life,” Berwick said of the attempted carjacking victim who shot the suspect. “He didn’t look like he had any regrets. I hope he doesn’t have any.”
Another witness to the shooting, Megan Chadwick, said her husband saw the civilian take down the shooter.
"He said he watched him (the shooter) take his last breath," Chadwick said. "There were three civilians going after him (the shooter) to shoot him and two of them had their guns up -- and then the third guy shot him through the window of the car."
Chadwick said her husband was armed as well.
She was inside the Walmart during the shooting with her multiple children.
"I looked over and saw hundreds of people running out. ... Just a flood of people and everyone was screaming and frantic. ... When we got about to the door, I heard someone say, 'Gun. Shooter.' And I knew something was serious," Chadwick said.
More news from KIRO 7
- Dangerous plant that causes blindness, 3rd degree burns found in multiple states, officials say
- Letter to Seattle convention leaders: Your problem is out of control
- Downtown Seattle tourist says he was attacked by homeless man
- Father says man grabbed his daughter, pulled her pants down at Walmart
- 'Very aggressive tick,' whose bite causes red meat allergies not a hoax, CDC says
Cox Media Group
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/EFVVU3PA45C7HMMCQW6MXQJO5U.jpeg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/WHVNHPXJVBGTJM4MBAS7E22DMU.png)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/6S2FIBBJXFA7PDNTEU34BKJFTM.jpeg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/LVGQR3ZSHRGL3D6RCL66FLPBVM.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/ZQPB27CG2ZD7VLYRXP6BBKYYCM.jpeg)