Categories: Idaho News

Coroner identifies deceased suspect in Tank Farm Road shootings

Police cars parked along Tank Farm Road following a fatal shooting on Friday. | EastIdahoNews.com file photo

POCATELLO — The Bannock County Coroner’s Office has identified the man who was shot and killed by police on Friday, after allegedly shooting four other people — killing two — on Tank Farm Road in Power County.

Richard Todd Forrest, 63, of Pocatello, is the man who was shot and killed by law enforcement officers, according to a Wednesday news release from Bannock County.

On Friday afternoon, emergency dispatchers received a report that three people had been shot on Tank Farm Road, about a mile north of the Simplot plant. Upon arrival, Power County deputies found two people deceased and one injured.

Officers from multiple agencies, including Pocatello police and Bannock County Sheriff’s Office, were called in to help search for the gunman. A police tactical team tried to negotiate with Forrest, the suspected gunman, but “ultimately, the suspect made a lethal threat towards that team, and that team responded to this lethal threat. The suspect was deceased at that time,” Bannock County Sheriff Tony Manu said.

“I would say that the nature of this incident today is unprecedented,” Power County Sheriff Kasey Kendall said in a press conference late Friday. “This is not something we typically deal with or handle on a routine or a regular basis.”

The coroner’s office previously released the identities of the two people initially shot and killed: Brandon Lee Madden, 40, and Amanda Ann Christian, 36, both of Pocatello. The identity of a third person shot alongside Madden and Christian remains unknown, but deputies said that person was in stable condition at the hospital.

A bystander who was on a boat on the Portneuf River was also shot by Forrest, the sheriff’s office said. That person’s identity has not been released by law enforcement, but investigators said he had been released from the hospital.

Wednesday’s news release seemingly offered an explanation for the delay in releasing Forrest’s identity.

“Our office is committed to a standard of absolute accuracy and compassion,” Bannock County Coroner Torey Danner said in the statement. “When family resides out of state, the logistics of locating and notifying them personally become more complex, but it is a necessary step. Ensuring a family hears this news from a professional — not from a news headline or a social media post — is a matter of respect that we will not compromise on.”

Meanwhile, Sheriff Kendall asked for the community’s patience as the investigation proceeds.

“At this stage, speculation only hinders the process,” he said. “We will provide a clear and factual account of the events as soon as it is responsible to do so.”

Power County Sheriff’s Office has not shared a possible motive for the shootings, nor have they said whether the victims and the gunman knew one another.

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