Sheriff Van Etten and Patrolman Wilbert McMicken, of the International Falls Department, succumbed to gunshot wounds received on September 18, 1922. Several officers had gone to a home to arrest a man for forging stolen checks. When the occupants of the house refused to open the door the officers attempted to force entry. One of the men inside opened fire, striking Patrolman McMicken and Sheriff Van Etten each in a leg. The suspect was able to escape but was later shot and killed by a posse. The wounded officers were taken to a local hospital where Patrolman McMicken died the following day. Sheriff Van Etten succumbed to his wound 11 days later.

Sheriff Van Etten had been with the agency for eight years and was survived by his wife and daughter.