Update: Man barricaded in Pasco with 5-year-old after stabbing brother. Gunfire in Kennewick

Officers surrounded a home in Pasco on Friday morning where an armed man had barricaded himself inside with his 5-year-old son.

The man allegedly stabbed his brother outside of the home on the 200 block of Sixth Avenue shortly before 7 a.m. Friday, Pasco police Sgt. Rigo Pruneda said.

Officers were called about the attack and found the wounded man in the front yard. He was rushed to a nearby hospital. His condition was not immediately known.

As police investigated, they discovered the suspect was still inside with a knife, his 5-year-old son and possibly other people.

The Tri-City Regional SWAT team was called, and have joined Pasco officers in encircling the house.

The boy and another man eventually safely left the home but the suspect remained inside early Friday afternoon.

The incident was two blocks from Longfellow Elementary School, which locked its doors and no visitors were allowed inside.

Officers then went into the house and arrested Darius R. Polhamus, who turns 28 on Saturday. No one was injured, said Pruneda.

The tense standoff was just the latest in a series of violent incidents overnight in the Tri-Cities.

▪ Kennewick officers were called to Kennewick High School at 6:50 p.m. Thursday after someone saw two cars chasing each other and possible gunfire, according to a news release.

When police arrived, they found one of the cars had crashed near the 600 block of South Garfield Street. Witnesses said a man wearing a reflective jacket and a woman ran from the car which had been reported stolen.

A police dog tried to track the two, but wasn’t able to find them. Investigators found no other signs of a shooting.

▪ About an hour and a half later, several people called 911 after hearing an argument followed by gunshots on the 9100 block of West Arrowhead Avenue. Then they found a man who had been shot and wounded, said Kennewick police.

The 30-year-old man was taken to a local hospital and was reported in stable condition.

Investigators were still working on finding a suspect.

▪ Just after midnight, Benton County Fire District 4 was called to a second-story apartment fire at The Enclave apartments in West Richland.

The residents in the apartment building were able to escape, the fire district said on Facebook.

Firefighters kept the fire from spreading to a neighboring apartment, and the other residents were able to return last night.

The apartment where the fire started was destroyed. The Red Cross is helping the occupants.

The Richland Fire Department and Benton County Fire District 2 also helped fight the fire.

This story was originally published April 22, 2022 at 9:50 AM.