Arrest reported after manhunt shuts down freeway in Everett, Wash., area for hours

Arrest made after manhunt shuts down Wash. freeway

EVERETT, Wash. — Officers in Everett, Wash., have made an arrest in an area that was the scene of a Wednesday evening manhunt that at one point closed all lanes of Interstate 5, backing up commuter traffic for miles.

The arrest of one man was reported shortly before 8 p.m. No details were immediately available.

Southbound I-5 lanes in the Everett area reopened at about 7 p.m. while northbound lanes remained closed, with a reported five-mile backup.

Snohomish County sheriff’s spokeswoman Rebecca Hover said earlier that officers were chasing an armed man who reportedly fired at deputies and later fled on foot from the freeway. One deputy’s vehicle was hit, but he was not injured.

Hover says deputies started pursuing a man in a black Jetta because they believed it was possibly stolen.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

EVERETT, Wash. (AP) — Northbound lanes of Interstate 5 in the Everett, Wash., area are closed but southbound lanes have reopened as officers hunt for an armed man who reportedly fired at deputies and later fled on foot from the freeway.

Snohomish County sheriff’s spokeswoman Rebecca Hover says deputies were chasing a vehicle Wednesday evening for an unspecified reason when the man in the car fired at them, striking one deputy’s vehicle. No one was injured.

Hover says that as officers chased the car north on I-5, there was a rollover crash involving a second vehicle that wasn’t part of the chase.

She says the man being chased stopped his car along I-5 and ran off, gun in hand. After receiving numerous calls from people nearby who saw the armed man, authorities shut down the freeway.

Deputies with police dogs were searching nearby neighborhoods.

Information from KOMO-TV, KIRO-TV