Officer Wounded in Sanders County Shootout – Suspect Killed

There was an officer involved shooting near Trout Creek in Sanders County early Friday morning in which the suspect was fatally shot by officers, but not before he wounded a law enforcement officer.

The Montana Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation issued a press release on Friday detailing the incident.

The Sanders County Sheriff’s Office received a call that a male suspect had barricaded himself inside the Naughty Pine Saloon near Trout Creek.

The suspect would not cooperate and so a call was made for the Missoula and Flathead County Sheriff’s Offices to deploy their SWAT teams to the scene.

The 35 year-old male suspect eventually ran from the saloon with a firearm, and he shot and wounded one of the pursuing officers. Law enforcement officers returned fire killing the suspect.

The wounded officer suffered a non life-threatening gunshot wound and was transported to Kalispell Regional Medical Center for treatment.

The Sanders County Sheriff’s Office requested that the Montana Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation make a thorough investigation into the incident.

No other information was released, including which law enforcement agency's officer was wounded, and the identity of the suspect.