A 35-year-old Fife Lake man is dead after a confrontation with authorities following a domestic assault.

Kalkaska County Sheriff’s Office deputies were called Saturday to a domestic assault at an Ingersol Road residence in Fife Lake. The suspect, a 35-year-old Fife Lake man, had fled the scene. On Sunday, the suspect was seen on a neighboring property owner’s trail camera approximately one mile from the residence on Ingersol Road. The property owner asked another neighbor to check the security of his trailer because he does not live nearby. The neighbor drove to the trailer and was confronted by the suspect. The suspect exited the trailer and fired a gun into the air. The neighbor left and contacted police.

A conservation officer from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and a deputy from the Kalkaska County Sheriff’s Office responded and saw the suspect fleeing into the woods. As the conservation officer and deputy pursued him, they heard gunfire and took cover. A Michigan State Police (MSP) K-9 Team and a member of the MSP Emergency Support Team (EST) responded and began tracking the suspect.The suspect was tracked to an elevated enclosed tree stand.

Upon approaching the tree stand, a confrontation occurred and troopers fired at the suspect inside the tree stand. Additional MSP EST members responded along with MSP Aviation. A drone was deployed, and it was determined that the suspect was dead. Inside the enclosed tree stand, troopers recovered a loaded gun under the suspect’s body.

The MSP Forensic Science Laboratory from Grayling and the MSP Sixth District Investigative Response Team from Grand Rapids responded to the scene to conduct an investigation. An autopsy is scheduled for later Monday. The case remains under investigation, and the suspect’s name has not yet been released.