Authorities say five police officers were placed on paid administrative leave following the death of a man they were trying to arrest in southeast Washington state.

The Tri-City Herald reported 48-year-old Jose Mercado was fighting with family members and had a knife when someone called the police.

Police said officers responded to a domestic violence call and were confronted in the street by Mercado. Police said an officer used a stun gun on him after he refused to listen to commands and approached with closed fists.

Police said the stun gun was "ineffective" and Mercado attacked as additional officers arrived.

The officers were able to place Mercado under arrest, at which point he became unresponsive.

Mercado, of Arlington, was given first aid and taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The Washington paper reported an autopsy into Mercado's cause of death was inconclusive and that toxicology results will be received in a few weeks.

Sandra Zamora, identified by The Fort Worth Star-Telegram as Mercado's wife, told the paper in a telephone interview that her husband did not have a heart problem and that "the police did this to him."

The administrative leave is standard policy for police as a multi-agency unit investigates the death.

The Star-Telegram identified a GoFundMe page raising money for Mercado's funeral expenses.