Lacey man at center of Thurston SWAT incident suffered multiple gunshot wounds

A 30-year-old Lacey man at the center of an incident involving Thurston County SWAT died as a result of multiple gunshot wounds, county Coroner Gary Warnock said Sunday.

The manner of death was ruled a homicide, but Warnock made clear that is a term of classification in this instance and does not mean a crime has been committed. Whether a crime has been committed would still have to be determined by the Thurston County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, he said.

About 5 p.m. Jan. 21, a Lacey officer who serves as a member on Thurston County SWAT shot Kaleb Lewis multiple times in the 4600 block of 45th Avenue Southeast in Lacey, according to the state Office of Independent Investigations (OII), The Olympian reported.

Law enforcement alleged Lewis barricaded himself in a unit and fired shots. The Lacey officer shot Lewis after he allegedly raised his firearm toward law enforcement, according to The Olympian report.

The state Office of Independent Investigations said as much in a news release as well.

“One officer fired multiple times from his firearm, striking the man. Medics with the SWAT team rendered aid, but the man was declared deceased at the scene.”

The man who died was identified as Lewis. The Lacey officer, who has been placed on paid administrative leave, is expected to be named in the coming days.

The Washington state Legislature created OII in 2021 to conduct independent investigations of deadly use of force by law enforcement.

This story was originally published January 25, 2026 at 2:52 PM.