Man suspected of pointing gun at men, firing round, then engaging in long standoff before arrest near Valley

Garrett Cabeza, The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash.
·1 min read

Aug. 13—A 57-year-old man was arrested after an hourslong standoff with authorities that started with the man allegedly pointing a handgun at three men and firing a round.

Around 5 p.m. Friday, a caller reported seeing a man, later identified as Raymond C. Schulte, pointing a handgun at the three men who were working on a car on Bigelow Gulch Road, near Lehman Road, north of Spokane Valley, according to a Spokane County Sheriff's Office news release.

Deputies were told Schulte confronted the three men, and the situation escalated when Schulte pointed a pistol at them and soon fired a round. None of the victims was injured.

The release said deputies attempted to speak with Schulte, but he refused, telling them to leave. Bigelow Gulch was closed for some time Friday night.

A SWAT team, crisis negotiators, Spokane County Fire District 9 Rescue Task Force and the Spokane Police Department were called to the scene to convince Schulte to surrender, deputies said.

Crisis negotiators coaxed Schulte into surrendering around 8:15 p.m. He was expected to be booked into the Spokane County Jail on suspicion of three counts of second-degree assault.

The sheriff's office is investigating.