A man stabbed four people to death in the street in Gig Harbor, Washington, on Tuesday morning after violating a no-contact order, the Pierce county sheriff’s office confirmed to local news outlets.
The four stabbing victims, as well as the 32-year-old suspect, are confirmed dead, the sheriff’s office said. Three of the victims died at the scene, while a fourth was taken to a hospital and later died from their injuries, authorities said.
Just before 9am, Pierce county sheriff’s deputies received a call from a home for a violation of a no-contact order. They obtained a copy of the order, learned it was not valid because it had not been served on the suspect and headed to the scene to provide it to him.
As police were heading to that location, several emergency calls reported a man stabbing people in the street at the same address.
Witnesses said at least one of the victims was stabbed in the middle of the street in front of multiple onlookers. The first deputy arrived within about three minutes and shots were fired.
Pierce county officials are investigating the incident.
Gig Harbor is a city of just over 12,000 people on Key Peninsula, west of Tacoma.
