FBI agents investigated over shots fired during standoff
(AP) — FBI agents involved in the traffic stop that led to the killing of one of the armed occupiers of an Oregon wildlife refuge are under investigation for not disclosing they fired shots that missed Robert "LaVoy" Finicum, authorities said Tuesday.
Oregon State Police troopers fired the three rounds that killed the Arizona rancher during a confrontation on a remote road, law enforcement officials said at a news conference in Bend.
An independent investigation by Oregon authorities found the troopers were justified in shooting Finicum because he failed to heed their commands and repeatedly reached for his weapon, Malheur County District Attorney Dan Norris said.
The investigators discovered members of an FBI hostage rescue team who were at the scene failed to disclose they fired two rounds.
Finicum was a high-profile part of the weekslong standoff at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, launched Jan. 2 by a small armed group demanding the government relinquish control of public lands and objecting to the prison sentences of two local ranchers convicted of setting fires.
Revelations that FBI agents at the scene failed to disclose their own shots may continue to fuel debate about Finicum's death.