Carjacking suspect shot dead by California State Parks officer at Palisades Tahoe ski resort

A California State Parks peace officer shot and killed a man wielding a knife Friday outside a hotel near Palisades Tahoe, prompting a large police presence at the popular ski resort.

The officer attempted to stop a suspect allegedly involved in a carjacking incident about 10 a.m. in Tahoe City, but the suspect drove away, state officials said in news release said.

A pursuit followed, ending with the suspect crashing his vehicle. The man exited the vehicle while carrying a knife, and that’s when the officer opened fire, fatally shooting him, the news release said.

The California Highway Patrol arrived to help with the incident. The State Parks and CHP officers attempted to render medical aid, but the man was pronounced dead, according to the news release.

The Placer County Sheriff’s Office will investigate what happened, California State Parks said in its news release. The officer’s name wasn’t released.

Gloria Sandoval, a deputy director of public affairs with the California Department of Parks and Recreation, said the officer was placed on administrative leave, per department policy.

“This is all of the information that I can provide to you at this time,” Sandoval wrote in an email.

State Parks officials said the man crashed the vehicle near the Olympic Valley Inn and the Olympic Village Event Center, located less than a mile north of the Palisades Tahoe main lodge.

Patrick Lacey, a spokesman with Palisades Tahoe, said the adjacent resort is open, that everyone is OK and “everything is secure.” He declined to comment further and referred all comments to California State Parks.

The Olympic Valley Inn is a timeshare vacation hotel. A room at the resort can cost upwards of $500 a night, according to the facility’s website.

Olympic Valley resident Sean Regan was waiting for a nearby post office to open at 10 a.m. when he saw a barrage of law enforcement vehicles from different agencies, sirens blaring, rush into the area. His wife, who was talking on the phone with Regan, said she heard a helicopter whirring past their home, he said.

“That kind of response is pretty exceptional,” Regan, 43, said in a phone interview. He noted there were anywhere from 12 to 15 different vehicles in the area. The crime scene unfolded where he usually parks.

Regan, who didn’t see the shooting unfold and wasn’t in danger, said he also spotted ski patrols with medical bags.