Seattle food festival shooting suspect, 15, held after deadly gunfight

A 15-year-old boy was ordered held in juvenile detention Monday after prosecutors alleged he fired into a crowd during the Seattle food festival shooting that left three people dead and at least four others wounded.

King County Superior Court Judge Tanya Thorp granted prosecutors’ request to keep the teen detained in connection with the gunfire Sunday night at the Bite of Seattle festival, according to officials. His public defender, Hong Tran, declined to comment Monday.

The teen is being held on suspicion of three counts of first-degree assault and one count of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office said. Casey McNerthney, a spokesperson for the office, said the boy had no previous criminal case in the county.

What happened at the Seattle food festival shooting?

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson said investigators believe at least two people exchanged gunfire outside the Seattle Center Armory during the festival. One person is in custody, and the second has been identified as a 19-year-old man who died, Wilson said at a Monday news conference.

The Bite of Seattle shooting happened during a crowded food festival at Seattle Center. Police are reviewing video, studying shell casings and following tips to determine how many people fired weapons, Wilson said.

Prosecutors said the shootout involved the 15-year-old, the 19-year-old who died at the scene and possibly a third person. Wilson said police are still searching for a possible third suspect.

Nicole Powell, assistant chief of investigations for the Seattle Police Department, said officials believe the violence could be gang-related and that two groups were firing. Officials have described the 15-year-old and the 19-year-old as “associates.”

According to a probable cause affidavit filed by prosecutors, a police officer who was less than 100 feet away saw the 15-year-old holding a handgun and firing into the crowd. Prosecutors said the teen was arrested shortly after the shooting.

Court documents say police detained the 19-year-old at the same time, and he later died from a gunshot wound. Prosecutors expect to receive early details from the police investigation Wednesday and make a charging decision soon after.

The King County medical examiner identified the three people killed as Junior Cee Niko Semo, 19, who died of multiple gunshot wounds; Ashley Whitehead, 56, who died of a gunshot wound to the pelvis; and Carlos Israel Sanchez Villalba, 44, who died of a gunshot wound to the torso.

Officials said four other people were wounded and are stable. Court documents say officers found three victims in the direction the 15-year-old is accused of firing, including a 2-year-old and a person pushing a bicycle.

Witnesses described panic after the shots rang out. Some people initially thought the noise was firecrackers, and social media video showed festivalgoers running and stumbling as they tried to escape.

Food vendor Hana Kim said people ducked under her family’s tent for cover as others ran toward the chaos looking for relatives. Kim said her first concern was getting her parents, who are in their 60s, to safety.

Kim, who had flown in from New York to help her family at the festival, said she hit the ground hard enough while shielding herself that her knee bled. She said she, her brother and his friend then helped move her parents toward a parking lot and evacuated several people sheltering at the stall.

On Monday, Kim said a woman who had taken cover at the stall called to thank the family. Kim said the call was sobering because she and her family were still in shock.

This story draws on original reporting from NBC News.