Updated

Updated · CNN · Jul 26

Seattle Police Detain 15-Year-Old in 3-Death Festival Shootout as Toddler, 2, Survives

Updated

Updated · CNN · Jul 26

Seattle Police Detain 15-Year-Old in 3-Death Festival Shootout as Toddler, 2, Survives

Q: Who is the mysterious third shooter that vanished into the panicked festival crowd, leaving three dead behind?

The “third shooter” is not publicly identified because investigators do not yet know who that person is. Seattle police and court records say they believe at least three people fired during the Bite of Seattle shooting: the 15-year-old detained at the scene, 19-year-old Junior Cee Niko Semo, who was killed, and at least one additional unknown suspect who fled in the chaos. Authorities have not released a name, description, age, or clear image of that person. What police have said is that the gunfire appears to have been a shootout between two groups and may be gang-related. Investigators believe the 15-year-old and Semo were associated with each other and were firing at at least one other person. Two guns were recovered at the scene, but that has not been enough to identify the remaining suspect. Officials have acknowledged the case was chaotic from the start. Early public statements referred to two shooters, but later juvenile court filings said the evidence points to at least three. Police also said they initially searched parts of the Seattle Center grounds, including an IMAX theater area, but did not find the fleeing suspect. So the direct answer is that the third shooter remains an unidentified suspect at large. Police are relying on witness accounts, video, shell-casing analysis, and public tips to determine who that person is and whether more than one unidentified gunman escaped.

3 articles · Updated · CNN · Jul 26

A 15-year-old surrendered at the Seattle Center scene and was ordered held in juvenile detention while prosecutors weigh firearms and first-degree assault charges after the Bite of Seattle shooting.
Police now say at least three shooters were involved — the detained teen, a 19-year-old who was killed, and at least one unidentified suspect — in what investigators believe was a gang-related exchange between two groups.
Three people died: Junior Cee Niko Semo, 19, Carlos Israel Sanchez Villalba, 44, and Ashley Whitehead, 56. Four others were wounded, including a 2-year-old boy who remained in satisfactory condition Monday.
At least seven bystanders were caught in the crossfire at the free festival, which draws hundreds of thousands each year, as attendees fled and knocked down a fence to escape.
Police recovered two weapons, say there is no ongoing public threat, and are seeking tips as the case heads to the King County prosecutor for a charging decision.