KUNA -- A man accused of shooting at a Kuna police officer early Tuesday morning died after being shot by members of the Ada County Sheriff's Office's tactical team, the sheriff's office said.
The shooting happened after a six-hour-long search in the Linder/Deer Flat/Hubbard Roads neighborhood. Authorities found him in a home in the 400 block of E. Black Hawk Drive.
The sheriff's office said members of the tactical team set up a perimeter around the home and shot the man as he tried to escape in a stolen car. He was pronounced dead at the scene, no other members of law enforcement or members of the public were injured.
The suspect, who has not been identified, had been evading capture since about 4 a.m. That's when a Kuna officer attempted to pull his black BMW over near Kay and Moonhill streets on suspicion he was involved in drug activity, authorities said.
A pursuit ensued, and the driver pointed a handgun out of the window, officials said. He fired eight to 10 shots at the officer near the East Wood Owl Drive intersection.
The officer stopped the pursuit. He wasn't hit by any bullets.
The suspect's empty BMW was found near Linder and Ardell roads a short time later.
Kuna police, the Ada County Sheriff’s Office, Boise police and Meridian police set up a perimeter around the neighborhood an began a search.
Kuna Police sent out an Code Red Emergency Alert to people in the area, telling them to stay inside their homes and keep doors locked. Subdivision entrances were blocked, and cars leaving those neighborhoods were stopped and searched by officers carrying rifles.
Reed Elementary School, which is near the subdivision, was closed by the Kuna School District.
Officers tracked the man to the Black Hawk Drive home around 10:30 a.m. The homeowner told police he didn't know the man or how he got inside.
The tactical team set up a perimeter, and officers saw the man walking inside the home with a handgun. Officers called the man on his cellphone but he didn't answer.
The sheriff's office said the garage door opened at around 11 a.m., and the man got into a car and tried to back out of the driveway. A Boise officer with the tactical team who had an armored vehicle parked nearby drove and hit the car before it could get out of the driveway.
That's when the sheriff's office said members of the tactical team fired at the man. He was pronounced dead a short time later.
The five Ada County sheriff's deputies on the tactical team who fired are Jeremy Byington, Raul Garcia, Ron Santucci, Cory Feldman, and D.J. Rupert.
Byington has been with the ACSO since 2004, Garcia since 2001, Santucci since 2002, Feldman since 2001, and Rupert since 2008.
Boise officers who worked with the tactical team and fired are Cpl. David Leavitt and Luis Gutierrez. Leavitt has been with Boise Police for 18 years, and Gutierrez for 11, after 7 years with the Ada County Sheriff's Office.
The Meridian officer who worked with the tactical team is a 37-year-old man who has been with the department for 12 years.
The investigation is still active, and evidence is still being collected at the scene. The sheriff's office said shell casings were found on Linder Road by the Wood Owl Drive intersection.
A backpack was also found that investigators believe the man dropped in a backyard several hundred feet away from the East Black Hawk Drive home. Two handguns bullets and a piece of metal were found by the backpack.
Officers made a tentative ID of the man, but the Ada County coroner hasn't made an official identification.
An autopsy will likely be done Wednesday, the sheriff's office said.
Stephanie Marie Prieto, 35, of Kuna was arrested in connection with the incident.
Ada County Sheriff's Office spokesman Patrick Orr said there's evidence that Prieto was in the car with the man who was killed when he shot at the Kuna officer.
She also ran away, and was found at a gas station in Meridian. Orr said it appears that someone gave her a ride.
Prieto was booked into the Ada County Jail on a charge of resisting or obstructing officers. Orr said she has posted bond.
Johnson thanked other agencies, including Boise and Meridian Police, for their help during the manhunt.
"In an event like this, in a large area or a large subdivision, we needed a lot of officers to ensure the safety of the people in those houses," he said.
The sheriff's office said the Critical Incident Task Force performs an independent investigation of all uses of lethal force by law enforcement in Ada County. Idaho State Police is the lead investigative agency in the incident.