Officers fire shots in Kent during arrest of Pierce County man wanted for homicide
A man accused of killing a U.S. National Guard officer during a drive-by shooting in Fife was arrested outside a Kent hotel on Thursday.
Andrew Lautogia Fonoti, 29, is accused of killing 23-year-old Rudolph King III on Sept. 12. King was driving when Fonoti allegedly shot him, sending his car off the road and into a lamppost. King died from a single gunshot wound to the head before the crash near the intersection of 70th Avenue East and 20th Street East, according to charging documents.
Prosecutors charged Fonoti with first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder, drive-by shooting, unlawful possession of a stolen vehicle and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, charging documents show.
Fife police had been searching for Fonoti for several weeks. Fife detectives learned that Fonoti was at the hotel in the 22000 block of 84th Avenue South on Thursday. He was considered armed and dangerous, according to assistant chief Aaron Gardner.
The Pierce County Metro Cities SWAT Team responded to the hotel. When SWAT units tried to take Fonoti into custody, one of the members fired shots. Fonoti was then taken into custody, Gardner said.
No officers were injured during the standoff. No other person, nor Fonoti, was struck or injured from the gunfire. The Kent Police Department is currently investigating the incident, Gardner said.
Fonoti was later booked into Pierce County Jail. He was to be arraigned at Pierce County Superior Court on Friday afternoon.
“The Fife Police Department appreciates all the help and assistance with taking Fonoti into custody from the FBI, Kent Police Department, and the King County Sheriff’s Office,” Gardner said.
