TAHLEQUAH, Okla. (KFSM) — A Tahlequah man was shot and killed by law enforcement following an hour-long standoff, according to our CBS affiliate News on 6.
News on 6 reports Eddie Maxwell had already shot his wife before officers arrived. He then pointed his gun at officers and himself.
The shootings took place at an apartment in the 600 block of Pamela Street around 8 p.m. Wednesday (Nov. 6).
The sister of 40-year-old Rachel Maxwell told police Rachel had just been shot in the head by her estranged husband, Eddie Ray Maxwell Sr.
The sister, not knowing where Eddie was, ran from the apartment when she called 911.
When police responded to the apartment, Eddie was found in the living room with a revolver in his hand, according to News on 6.
Tahlequah Police Chief Nate King told News on 6 that he attempted to talk Eddie down, but when it was getting nowhere he called the Cherokee Nation Marshals for help.
After the Marshals took over, King said one marshal fired multiple shots, hitting Maxwell and killing him. King said Maxwell had a gun, and the marshal had no choice but to shoot.
King says the first shot was fired by Eddie, who shot Rachel in the head at close range. King said a long and heated argument between the couple led to her murder.
“It was an eerie feeling inside the apartment,” King told News on 6. “And we’re pleading with him, trying every angle we could to get him to put the gun down. He just wasn’t having it.”
King said that Eddie kept saying he wasn’t going back, and that he believes he was referencing prison.
By the time officers were able to reach Rachel, she was already dead.
OSBI is now investigating the evidence and body camera footage from the incident.
