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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Suspect in custody following officer-involved shooting

From staff reports
A Spokane police officer fired at a man allegedly trying to rob a Chinese restaurant on North Division Street early Monday morning, but did not hit him. Police received a call at 7:22 a.m. after the suspect triggered a commercial burglary alarm at Peking North, 4120 N. Division. The officer arrived four minutes later and heard noise inside the building. He ushered out the owners, who had been preparing to open the restaurant, Spokane Police Chief Frank Straub said during a news conference. The suspect then “bolted” out of the building and into an alley on the east side of the building, Straub said. The officer followed, and the suspect pulled out a realistic-looking airsoft gun (pictured, below). The officer ordered the man to put it down, but he refused, and the officer fired several times. “We don’t shoot to miss,” Straub said. The man continued running away and the officer caught up to him and eventually took him into custody after a fight in the alley. During the fight, which Straub called “aggressive,” the officer’s glasses were knocked off and his watch was broken. The officer also used a Taser in an attempt to subdue the suspect. Both the officer and the suspect were treated for injuries. The suspect later was identified as Cephas W. Parham, 39. He faces charges of first-degree burglary and second-degree assault, according to a news release from the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office, which is managing the multi-agency investigation into the incident. Parham has more than 20 felony convictions dating back to the 1990s, including multiple car thefts and a vehicular homicide. He was sentenced to 5 1/2 years in prison in 2011 for choking a police dog during a pursuit near Shadle Park in November 2010; he had been wanted on a warrant for a previous car theft. In December 2009, he was arrested for allegedly smashing a pickup into a North Division Street cell phone store and trying to steal the ATM. The sheriff’s office is the “managing agency” in this incident, the release said. The police department will release the name of the officer. The case will be investigated by the Spokane Investigate Regional Response Team, which is made up of multiple agencies in Eastern Washington. Read more: Increased criminal use of airsoft guns worries police