Tacoma hotel employee shoots man who threatened other employees with knife

Police are investigating a shooting that left a 45-year-old man, who was armed with a knife, injured overnight in Tacoma. 

The incident happened at the Quality Inn and Suites in the 8800 block of South Hosmer Street at 11:49 p.m. Tuesday. 

According to police, the man walked into the hotel and threatened three employees with a knife. 

Police say one of the employees, a 32-year-old woman, shot the man.

The man was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. 

Police told FOX 13 News that once he is out, he will be booked on suspicion of first-degree felony assault. 

FOX 13 News spoke to the employees involved in the incident off-camera. The woman who shot the man said she had no other option, as the attacker was threatening the life of her co-workers.

The employee says the man is not a stranger to the business either. She says he has caused issues at the hotel in the past.

The employee says they had called police before the incident turned violent, because the man was trespassing on the property.

Tacoma Police confirm a 911 call came in from the hotel about ten minutes before the shooting, however no police were available due to resources already focused on a robbery that had occurred earlier in the night.

There is video surveillance from inside the hotel of the attack.

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None of the employees were injured. 

This incident happened on South Hosmer Street, a hot-spot for crime in the city of Tacoma.

According to city numbers, between 84th and 90th Streets on South Hosmer, there have been 1355 crimes in a seven-year period.

In comparison, just one street over on South Alaska, there only 120 crimes in the same time period.