UPDATE: In the hours after this story’s publication, the FBI confirmed to Cowboy State Daily that it is investigating the shooting detailed below. The agency did not comment on the death and will share “no further” information with the public during its investigation, but will deliver its results to the U.S. Attorney for Wyoming, an FBI spokesman said Friday.
At least one Bureau of Indian Affairs officer was involved in a shooting Thursday evening on the Wind River Indian Reservation, according to local authorities.
Official records and interviews suggest that the suspect in the shooting has died, however, the FBI has not yet officially confirmed it.
Two deputies from the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office responded at about 4:58 p.m. Thursday to the scene of an officer-involved shooting involving Bureau of Indian Affairs agents in Ethete, undersheriff Mike Hutchison confirmed Friday to Cowboy State Daily.
“All the officers are OK,” Hutchison said, adding that the deputies were only on scene to aid with “scene security.”
The FBI and the Bureau of Indian Affairs have jurisdiction on the reservation.
According to the sheriff’s log, the Fremont County Coroner was called at 4:58 p.m. to a “stab/gunshot” fatality. Fremont County Coroner’s deputy Tony Simmers confirmed Friday that there had been a death.
“Officer has shots fired; (Redacted) need a deputy to respond,” reads the sheriff’s log for the same incident.
Hutchison could not give details regarding what may have led to the shooting or whether the suspect involved has died, as the sheriff’s office generally does not have jurisdiction on the reservation.
Simmers said the fatality is under investigation, and the FBI is the primary source of information on the investigation. The FBI is reviewing a Cowboy State Daily request for information.
