Suspect killed by officer at gas station took hostages: Sioux Falls Police Chief

Sioux Falls Police Chief Jon Thum provided an update on a police shooting at a gas station, where a hostage situation unfolded.

Thum briefed media on the shooting during a Wednesday morning press conference at City Hall.

At about 3 a.m. Wednesday morning, a Sioux Falls Police officer was approaching the Get-n-Go gas station in the 600 block of South Minnesota Avenue to purchase some food when a person began firing at the officer, Thum said.

Simultaneously, a call for service of a person with a firearm at the store went out to Metro Communications, Thum said. He noted the sound of gunshots could be heard over the report.

Thum said an officer returned fire within the parking lot and cleared nearby bystanders.

An emergency call for service for all police units was put out during the incident, Thum said, and a large police presence responded to the scene.

Thum said officers determined the incident had developed into hostage situation, with employees being held against their will inside the gas station.

SWAT teams from both Sioux Falls Police Department and Minnehaha County Sheriff's Office were activated, Thum said.

At about 3:40 a.m., a Minnehaha County Sheriff's Deputy and SWAT officer deployed a department-issued sniper rifle, Thum said.

As the situation was unfolding, "in protection of the hostages' life," Thum said the officer fired a shot at the suspect in the gas station. The subject was hit by the rifle bullet, and officers on scene then made an emergency crisis entry into the building and rescue the hostages.

"There was one hostage that was immediately in the vicinity of the individual, and another one was hiding in a bathroom, and another that had already exited the building," Thum said.

After removing the hostages from the scene, Thum said medics arrived at the gas station to provide aid to the perpetrator of the shooting. They were pronounced dead on the scene, Thum said.

"This is one of those … extremely tense situations where lives hang in the balance in a variety of ways," Thum said.

Thum would not provide any details about the age, name or gender of the deceased suspect. He would also not disclose whether the incident started as a robbery in nature or other crime. The hostages were not injured.

In a separate release from the South Dakota Attorney General's Office, the officers were not injured in the response.

Attorney General Marty Jackley confirmed the Division of Criminal Investigation will be investigating the shooting at the request of Sioux Falls Police and the Minnehaha County Sheriff's Office. DCI will release a shooting summary likely within 30 days.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Suspect killed by officer at gas station took hostages: Sioux Falls Police Chief