The suspect who allegedly ambushed firefighters on the job in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, had contact and discussion with first responders before shooting at them with a shotgun, killing two of them and critically injuring a third, Kootenai County Sheriff Robert Norris said.
During a news conference on Monday, Norris identified the suspect as 20-year-old Wess Roley. His body was found at the scene of the fire late Sunday night along with a firearm, the sheriff said. Norris said Monday that it appeared the suspect shot himself.
As the Nettleton Gulch Fire continued to burn on Monday, the sheriff said it will take days to fully process the area, but investigators have located Roley’s vehicle in an embankment near the scene. He said investigators have not yet been able to inventory the vehicle, which has “a lot of debris in there.” It appears Roley was living in the vehicle, Norris said.
Norris said authorities have not found any writings that would indicate the suspect’s motive.
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The suspect previously had five “very minor” encounters with law enforcement but had no criminal history, according to the sheriff. The interactions with officers “had to do more with trespassing, he was asked to leave and [was] cooperative,” Norris said. Other interactions included welfare checks reported by property owners about Roley’s vehicle, the sheriff said.
The firefighters were responding to a wildfire Sunday afternoon in a popular recreation area at Canfield Mountain when Roley began firing at them, Norris said. The sheriff said investigators believe the suspect used a flint starter to start the fire to lure the firefighters there.
“And we do believe that it was an ambush and it was intentional. These firefighters did not have a chance,” Norris said Sunday.
Investigators initially believed the firefighters were being attacked by snipers, due to reports from first responders, but Norris said Monday that a shotgun was used and slugs were recovered from the scene.
Authorities are also looking through Roley’s social media presence to find a motive. Norris said investigators have not found any connection to “Islamic jihad,” disputing rumors spreading on social media.
The victims have not yet been publicly identified. The Kootenai County Fire and Rescue Office is expected to hold a separate news conference at 4 p.m. PT (7 p.m. ET) to share more details. The wounded firefighter was “fighting for his life” after surgery but was in stable condition, Norris said.
Mehmet Yaren Bozgun/Anadolu via Getty Images 
According to a Facebook post by his mother, Roley moved from Arizona to Idaho when he turned 18 in 2023 to work for his father’s tree-cutting company. In an update shared in October 2024, his mother wrote he was “doing great living in Idaho.”
In a phone interview with CBS News, his paternal grandfather, Dale Roley, described Wess as “pretty much a normal kid.” He said his grandson had recently lost his cellphone and did not have a “high-powered rifle.”
“He had a .22 long rifle and a shotgun,” he said. “That’s not a high-powered rifle by any stretch. We’re just hoping there’s some weird circumstances and Wess wasn’t actually involved.”
Dale Roley confirmed that Wess had worked for his father’s tree company, but more recently was working at a different tree company in Coeur d’Alene. He said his grandson “wanted to be a fireman” and applied for a job with the forestry service four or five months ago.
He offered his condolences to the families of the firefighters who were killed.
As of Monday afternoon, the Nettleton Gulch Fire has spread to approximately 26 acres, the Idaho Department of Lands said in a statement. No evacuations have been ordered and no structures are at risk, the agency said.
Brian Dakss and
contributed to this report.
