COEUR d’ALENE — The man suspected of ambushing firefighters who responded to a blaze he set on Canfield Mountain, fatally shooting two and seriously wounding a third, did so after firefighters asked him to move his vehicle, authorities said Monday.

The first responders who rushed to a grass fire on the east side of Canfield Mountain around 1:30 p.m. Sunday quickly found themselves under attack from a gunman who shot from a tree, according to the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office. 

Authorities confirmed Monday that battalion chief John Morrison of the Coeur d’Alene Fire Department and battalion chief Frank Harwood of Kootenai County Fire and Rescue were fatally shot in Sunday’s attack.

Dave Tysdal, an engineer with the Coeur d’Alene Fire Department, was wounded and remains in critical condition.

Police identified the suspected shooter as Wess V. Roley, 20. He had previously lived in California and Arizona but had resided in the Coeur d’Alene area since 2024, police said, apparently living out of his car. 

Around 300 law enforcement officers from local, state and federal agencies converged on Canfield Mountain after the shooting. While the suspected shooter was at large, fire crews were unable to approach the blaze and community members were stuck on the mountain.

Hours after the fatal shooting and subsequent standoff, police used a cell signal to hone in on Roley’s location, finding him dead with a shotgun nearby and flames closing in on his body, according to KCSO. Police said Roley appears to have died by suicide. 

Roley’s motives remained unclear Monday. 

Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris said no “manifesto” has been found so far. He noted that Roley once wanted to be a firefighter. 

“We don’t know if there is a nexus between that and what happened yesterday,” he said, adding that investigators have not found any record of Roley applying to any local fire agencies. 

Roley had family in Priest River, according to KCSO. 

“He did grow up in an arborist family and they climbed trees,” Norris said.

Roley’s grandfather, Dale Roley, told KXLY-TV that his grandson was an avid hiker who worked for a tree company and was interested in forestry. 

The Associated Press reported that Roley lived with T.J. Franks Jr. for about six months in Sandpoint while working for a tree service. Franks said he had cameras in his apartment that caught Roley throwing gang signs at them one day, which worried Franks to the point that he called police.

“I didn’t know what to really think about it,” Franks said. “I just called the cops and had them talk to him.”

The landlord also called Franks one morning because neighbors reported that Roley’s vehicle had been left running for about 12 hours, according to the Associates Press. Franks said Roley was asleep in his room and said he forgot about the vehicle.

Franks said Roley “started acting a little weird” and at one point shaved his long hair off completely.

“We just kind of noticed him starting to decline or kind of go downhill,” he said.

Before Sunday’s attack, Roley had five “very minor” interactions with local law enforcement, including two interactions with Coeur d’Alene police and three with sheriff’s deputies. Norris said some of the interactions occurred after community members called in welfare checks while Roley’s vehicle was parked on private property. 

Roley was cooperative during his past contacts with law enforcement, Norris said. He had no criminal history in Idaho or the other states where he resided. 

During a news conference Monday afternoon, Norris showed a photo he said was posted on Roley’s Instagram story before the shooting. The “story” feature allows Instagram users to share photos and videos that disappear after 24 hours. 

The photo appeared to show Roley dressed in camo-patterned clothing with a mask covering the lower half of his face. Norris said Roley’s Instagram account is now deleted, though it’s unclear whether Roley deleted the account himself. 

The investigation into Sunday’s events is ongoing, Norris said.

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The Associated Press contributed to this story.