15-year-old shot into Seattle food festival crowd during deadly gunfight, prosecutors allege - NBC News

What the report says

NBC News reported that a King County judge ordered a 15-year-old boy held in juvenile detention Monday after a shooting at Seattle’s Bite of Seattle food festival left three people dead and at least four others injured. The gunfire erupted Sunday night near the Seattle Center Armory, a crowded area close to major attractions including the Space Needle. Prosecutors said the teenager was involved in an exchange of gunfire that also included a 19-year-old man who died at the scene, and possibly another person.

According to NBC, Seattle officials said the incident may have been gang-related, though police were still working to determine exactly who fired and how many people were involved. Mayor Katie Wilson said investigators would review video, examine shell casings and follow tips. Court documents cited by NBC said an officer nearby saw the 15-year-old holding a handgun and firing toward the crowd. 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; prosecutors had not yet made a formal charging decision.

The King County medical examiner identified the three people killed as Junior Cee Niko Semo, 19; Ashley Whitehead, 56; and Carlos Israel Sanchez Villalba, 44. Officials said four wounded people were stable, and NBC reported that a 2-year-old boy injured in the shooting had been discharged from Harborview Medical Center.

The shooting disrupted one of Seattle’s major public food events and sent attendees and vendors scrambling for cover. NBC described witnesses who initially mistook the shots for fireworks and video showing people fleeing as officers ran toward the scene.