Update: Officer Involved Shooting Incident
The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office is releasing the name of the Sergeant wounded during the SWAT standoff with armed, barricaded, DV suspect, Dean J. Bellamy, along with the name of the deputy who deployed less lethal rounds which were ineffective and the deputies who returned fire after Bellamy shot at them.
Sergeant H. J. Whapeles (pronounced Way-pulls) sustained a gunshot wound to his right shoulder and was released from the hospital on March 8, 2017. Thankfully he is home with his family resting and expected to make a full recovery.  Sergeant Whapeles is a 16 year veteran of the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office where he earned the rank of Sergeant in 2015 and he has been a member and of the SWAT Team for the past 13 years.  During his career, he has received several letters of commendation from citizens and coworkers recognizing his excellent work. He also received the Unit Merit Award-SWAT Team in 2014 and most recently received a Community Service Award presented by the Spokane Valley Fire Department for his work designing, developing and delivering the tactical curriculum to the Spokane Valley Rescue Task Force. Prior to his law enforcement career, he proudly served our Country as a United States Marine. During that time, he was honored to serve as a member of the security force at Camp David during the George H.W. Bush Presidency.
At this time, Sergeant Whapeles and his family ask for privacy and respectfully decline requests for interviews. However, Sergeant Whapeles did state, “I am overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from local area law enforcement, the many other area first responders and the public. My family and I are forever grateful for the unbelievable support of this community.”
Deputy Rob Cunningham (less lethal deployment) is a 27 year veteran of the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office and has been a member of the SWAT Team for the past 12 plus years. During his career, he has received several letters of commendation from citizens and coworkers recognizing his excellent work. He also received the Unit Merit Award-SWAT Team in 2014. He served our Country for 30 years as a member of the Air National Guard and has been deployed several times to include support of Operation Noble Eagle and the Global War on Terror.
Detective Mike McNees is a 16 year veteran of the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office and has been a member of the SWAT Team for the past 14 years. During his career, he has received several letters of commendation from citizens and coworkers recognizing his excellent work. He also received the Unit Merit Award-SWAT Team in 2014.
Corporal Jeff Welton is a 20 year veteran of law enforcement and has been a member of the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office for almost 16 of those years. He has 7 years’ experience as a member of the SWAT Team where he was recently named as an Assistant Team Leader. During his career, he has received several letters of commendation from citizens and coworkers recognizing his excellent work. He also received the Unit Merit Award-SWAT Team in 2014 and he earned the rank of Corporal in 2010. He was a member of the Emergency Operations Team (Dive/Rescue Team) for 5 years and was named a Team Leader. He previously served our Country as a member of the Washington State Army National Guard.
Deputy Jason Petrini is a 15 year veteran of the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office and has been a member of the SWAT Team for the past 8 years. During his career, he has received several letters of commendation from citizens and coworkers recognizing his excellent work including the Unit Merit Award-SWAT Team in 2014. He served his Country as a member of the United States Army for four years and earned his BA in Criminal Justice from Eastern Washington University.
Deputy David Totman became a deputy with the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office 3 plus years ago. After successfully completing his initial training, he applied for and earned a position as a member of the SWAT Team just under a year ago. He received a Certificate of Appreciation in 2016, is a Defensive Tactics Instructor, and is a valued member of the Sheriff’s Office. He earned an Associate’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Spokane Community College.
The SIRR Team’s investigation of the incident is ongoing. The SIRR Team is comprised of multiple agencies in Eastern Washington, including the Spokane Police Department, the Washington State Patrol and the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office.
• The Spokane Police Department is the managing agency in this incident. All future communications on this incident will be sent via the SIRR Team.
• Once the SIRR Team investigation is complete the case will be forwarded to the Spokane County Prosecutor’s Office for review.
Deputy Mark Gregory
Spokane County Sheriff’s Office
Spokane Valley Police Department
Public Information Officer