STERLING, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas undersheriff was shot and wounded trying to execute a warrant against a man who absconded from the corrections system, and a sheriff was shot in a subsequent standoff at a nearby house that ended early Tuesday with two men dead.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation said in a news release that the Rice County undersheriff attempted to stop a car north of the small town of Sterling around 5 p.m. Monday because an occupant, David Madden, had an outstanding warrant against him.
The news release doesn’t detail that warrant, but KSNW-TV reported that Madden, 37, has a long criminal history. Kansas Department of Corrections records list him as an absconder from a program that supervises felony offenders. The department spokeswoman didn’t immediately return a phone message and online records provided no details.
Less than a minute later, the undersheriff radioed to dispatch that he had been shot. KBI spokeswoman Melissa Underwood said Madden shot him. He was flown to a hospital in critical condition with four gunshot wounds. Sterling is a town of about 2,000 people about 70 miles (110 kilometers) northwest of Wichita.
The KBI said the sheriff and a deputy later went to a home southeast of nearby Raymond, another small town, where they encountered Madden. The sheriff was shot in the leg in an exchange of gunfire. He was taken to a hospital in good condition, while law enforcement surrounded the home.
KSNW-TV reported that a KBI official said at the scene early Tuesday that two men’s bodies were found at the home after a standoff. The KBI hasn’t identified the two bodies but says the community is no longer at risk.
It is unclear if the home in Raymond was Madden’s home and KBI has not said why the sheriff and deputy went to that home. A KBI spokeswoman didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press early Tuesday, including confirmation that Madden was among the dead.
Madden had a long list of run-ins with law enforcement. According to federal court documents, the latest was in February. The documents show Madden was in possession of an unregistered machine gun.
In 2017, Madden led law enforcement on a high-speed chase. He was arrested after a standoff with law enforcement. A search warrant says dozens of guns and pipe bombs were found on his property. The warrant also mentions he was involved in a missing person investigation, which the KBI says remains open.
