Owyhee coroner identifies Idaho man shot, killed by federal agents over the weekend

Sally Krutzig
·2 min read
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The Owyhee County Coroner’s Office identified the man shot and killed by federal law enforcement after fleeing an arrest attempt.

Owyhee Coroner Aaron Tines pronounced Cody Whiterock, 39, of Owyhee, dead at the scene at 6:38 p.m. Saturday, according to a Wednesday news release from the coroner’s office. The coroner listed his cause and manner of death as “pending.”

Whiterock died at milepost 15 along Idaho Route 51 in Riddle, according to the coroner.

The coroner’s office was called to the scene at 10:49 a.m. on Saturday and Tines arrived at 2:28 p.m., according to the release. The Owyhee County Coroner’s Office is located in Marsing, about 2.5 hours from Riddle.

“The time of death was pronounced by the Owyhee County Coroner’s Office once the scene was processed and the decedent was able to be examined,” Tines said in an email to the Idaho Statesman.

Officers from the U.S. Department of Interior Bureau of Indian Affairs, responsible for enforcing tribal laws and making arrests on Native American land, pursued a vehicle driven by Whiterock from the Duck Valley Reservation in Nevada into Idaho, the Idaho Statesman previously reported. Once the officers got into Idaho, Whiterock ran from his car, and officers fired their weapons, according to an Idaho State Police release.

The Duck Valley Reservation includes land in both states south of Mountain Home along Idaho 51 and Nevada Route 225.

Court records show Whiterock had a warrant out for his arrest for a December incident in which he was charged with a felony for fleeing law enforcement in a vehicle, and a misdemeanor for resisting or obstructing officers.

The Owyhee County Sheriff’s Department asked Idaho State Police to investigate the shooting, according to the release. The agency’s detectives are “working to determine what initiated the pursuit and the timeline of events that led to shots being fired,” the release said.

Idaho State Police spokesperson Aaron Snell said he could not provide information on the number of officers who fired weapons, whether the man threatened officers or was armed, and why deadly force was used, saying that information was part the ongoing investigation.

The U.S. Department of Interior Bureau of Indian Affairs will be the agency that will identify the officers involved, according to Snell.

Alex Brizee contributed to this reporting.