FERNDALE, Wash. – Police recovered a sizable arsenal from the man who barricaded himself in a Ferndale motel room earlier this week.
A Ferndale officer reported that 47-year-old Kenneth Velen of Texas pointed an AR-style rifle at him during a traffic stop early Tuesday, then barricaded himself in a room at the Super 8 Motel.
The standoff lasted nearly 6 hours before officers deployed tear gas into his room and took him into custody.
Investigators recovered multiple weapons from Velen’s room and car, including 3 semi-automatic rifles, one other rifle, a shotgun, six handguns, three knives and a hatchet.
Over 4200 rounds of ammunition, 97 gun magazines, and body armor were also seized during the search.
Ferndale Police Chief Kevin Turner wouldn’t speculate on what Velen intended to do with the weapons, but says in a statement that “based on the weapons seized at the scene, this situation could have easily taken a very different path.”
Velen remains in the Whatcom County Jail on $200,000 bail.