Seattle Police have arrested one suspect and are searching for another after gunfire broke out at the popular food festival near the Space Needle on Sunday evening.
A festival turns to chaos
A shooting at the Bite of Seattle food festival left three people dead and four others wounded on Sunday evening, police said. The gunfire erupted at the Seattle Center, the downtown venue that sits in the shadow of the city’s Space Needle.
Police were called to the scene just after 6 p.m., according to the Seattle Police Department. Officers arrived to find two people firing at each other, police said. In all, seven people were shot.
The festival, one of the city’s biggest annual events, was in its final hours when the shooting began. It draws crowds of up to 350,000 people over three days.
The victims
Two people died at the scene, said Seattle Assistant Police Chief Tyrone Davis. A third victim later died at Harborview Medical Center.
Police identified the three who died as a 19-year-old man, a 44-year-old man, and a 56-year-old woman. Their names have not been released.
Four other people were wounded, officials said. Among them was a 2-year-old boy, who was taken to Harborview and remained in stable condition on Monday, according to hospital spokesperson Susan Gregg.
The other wounded victims were a 23-year-old man, a 39-year-old woman, and a 40-year-old woman, officials said. Gregg said their injuries included wounds to the arm, leg, and abdomen.
Witnesses describe the panic
Festival-goers described a sudden rush to escape. Justice Beitzel said he was eating with friends near a concert stage when the shots rang out.
“There were about six or seven, multiple gunshots,” Beitzel told CNN. Moments later, he said, he saw a crowd running toward him.
Another attendee, Adya Sengupta, said she took shelter inside the Seattle Armory. She told KING 5 that dozens of people flooded through the doors within seconds.
The exact sequence of events remains unclear. Police believe two people exchanged gunfire and that bystanders were caught in the crossfire.
The investigation
One suspect, whom police described only as a “young person,” was taken into custody and was being questioned. Officers were still searching for a second person believed to be involved, Davis said.
Two guns were recovered at the scene, police said. Officers who were working nearby ran toward the gunfire and did not fire their own weapons, according to Davis.
Police said they do not believe the public is in danger. “We believe that we have no outstanding threat to the community,” Davis said. The motive for the shooting is not yet known.
Several agencies joined the investigation, including the FBI and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson said a state SWAT team responded at the request of Seattle police.
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson’s office initially said two people were in custody. She later corrected that figure to one.
What happens next
The investigation is ongoing, and no charges have been announced. Police have asked anyone with information to come forward through their tip line.
The Seattle Monorail, which was shut down after the shooting, reopened Monday morning. Police said they expect to release more details as the case develops.
