Independent investigators are reviewing the shooting after police said the man pointed a weapon at responding officers outside The Commons.
FEDERAL WAY, WA — Federal Way police fatally shot a man outside The Commons mall Thursday evening after officers said he pointed a weapon at them as they responded to reports of an armed man threatening people in the parking lot.
The shooting followed several 911 calls around 6:40 p.m. Sept. 10 reporting a man with a gun outside the shopping center near Pacific Highway South and South 320th Street, according to the Federal Way Police Department. Callers told dispatchers the man was pointing the weapon at people in the parking lot. Police said one caller reported that the man appeared to be waiting for officers to arrive.
Officers reached the mall shortly afterward and tried to contact the man, police said. According to the department’s preliminary account, the man pointed a weapon at officers during the encounter. Officers then fired, striking him. Authorities have not released the number of officers who fired or said how many shots were discharged.
Officers and medical personnel provided emergency aid after the shooting, but the man died from his injuries. His name had not been released as of Friday. Police described him as a white man believed to be in his 20s or 30s. Authorities had not released additional identifying information.
No officers or bystanders were injured, police said. The department initially told the public there was no continuing danger but asked people to avoid the area while investigators processed the scene. The shooting occurred outside the mall in the parking area, according to police accounts released Thursday night.
The officers involved in the shooting were placed on administrative leave under department policy. Officials had not publicly identified those officers or said how many were directly involved in firing their weapons. Administrative leave following a police shooting does not by itself indicate wrongdoing and allows an independent investigation to proceed.
The Valley Independent Investigation Team is leading the investigation. The regional team includes investigators from law enforcement agencies in south King County and is used to examine police uses of deadly force independently of the agency whose officers were involved. Federal Way police said its department will not participate in the investigation of its own officers.
Washington rules require qualifying police uses of deadly force to be investigated independently. King County officials say members of the law enforcement agency involved in a shooting cannot assist with the independent investigation. The review typically focuses on collecting evidence and establishing the circumstances of the encounter before prosecutors make any separate decision about whether criminal charges are supported.
Federal Way police said the initial information released Thursday was preliminary and could change as investigators gather evidence and interview witnesses. The Valley Independent Investigation Team is expected to provide future public updates. The man’s identity and further details about the weapon, the officers’ actions and the sequence immediately before the gunfire had not been released as of Friday.
Author note: Last updated Sept. 11, 2026.