LINCOLN CITY, Ore. — Oregon State Police SWAT shot and killed an armed man on Thursday who was barricaded inside a home.
On Wednesday afternoon, around 11:30 a.m., police officers attempted to issue a parking complaint to the man, regarding a retired school bus that had been converted into a motor home, which had been illegally parked by a fire hydrant in the Northwest Oar Place area.
The man, inside said school bus at the time, fired at least three shots at them, Lincoln City police said. Police did not return fire.
After firing shots, the man took off. The bus was later found abandoned in the parking lot of the Sea Gypsy Motel on Highway 101, Lincoln City police said. Officers believe the man ran onto the beach, and he was not immediately located.
Around 10 p.m., Lincoln City police confirmed to KGW that they had reason to believe the man might be in a home. Police said officers were outside the home and were working on getting a search warrant. Residents nearby were asked to shelter in place and stay away.
Just after midnight, Oregon State Police (OSP) SWAT responded to the home near Northwest 19th Street and Northwest Jetty Avenue. They confirmed that the man was inside, and a search warrant was granted.
Negotiators attempted to communicate with the man, who "made numerous threatening statements," Oregon State Police said in a news release late Thursday morning.
Around 2:45 a.m., the man started shooting through the windows of the home, according to OSP. A fire started inside the home, and as it spread, the man went onto the roof with a rifle, OSP said. Four OSP SWAT members fired at the man after he refused to drop the rifle, OSP said.
The man fell from the roof to the ground, and SWAT personnel provided him with medical aid, but he died. SWAT personnel recovered his firearm.
Lincoln Police Department identified the man as 38-year-old Walter O. Anderson of Nevada.
The Lincoln County Sheriff's Office is leading an investigation into the incident, with help from the Lincoln City and Newport police departments, and the Oregon State Police Criminal Investigations Division.
This is a developing story, and it will be updated when more information becomes available.
