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

SEATTLE — A judge ordered a 15-year-old held in juvenile detention Monday in connection with a gunfight at a crowded Seattle food festival that killed three people and injured at least four others.

Prosecutors said the gunfight involved the 15-year-old, a 19-year-old man who died at the scene and possibly a third person. Officials said the shooting could be gang-related.

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson said police continue to investigate what happened and how many people were involved.

“We now know that at least two people exchanged gunfire outside the Seattle Center Armory. One is in custody, and a second has been identified as the 19-year-old deceased man,” Wilson said at a news conference Monday afternoon.

Police will review video, analyze bullet casings and follow additional leads through tip lines to establish a clearer picture of what took place, she said.

Prosecutors asked that the 15-year-old be held in detention, and King County Superior Court Judge Tanya Thorp agreed. His public defender, Hong Tran, declined to comment Monday.

The 15-year-old is being held on suspicion of three counts of first-degree assault and one count of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm. He had not been involved in a criminal case before in the county, King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office spokesperson Casey McNerthney said.

Gary Gatewood Jr., a youth coordinator in Seattle at Southwest Youth and Family Services, said he knows the teen but declined to share additional details about him.

Prosecutors expect to receive initial details of the police investigation Wednesday and make a formal charging decision soon after.

Officials have called the 15-year-old and the 19-year-old “associates.”

“At this point, we believe this could be gang-related. There were two groups firing,” said Nicole Powell, the assistant chief of investigations for the Seattle Police Department.

A police officer less than 100 feet away saw the 15-year-old holding a handgun and firing into the crowd Sunday night during the Bite of Seattle food festival, according to a probable cause affidavit filed by prosecutors.

The teen was taken into custody shortly after the shooting, prosecutors said. Police detained the 19-year-old at the same time, and he later died of a gunshot wound, according to court documents.

“Police continue to look for a third possible suspect,” Wilson said.

The King County medical examiner released the names of the dead Monday afternoon.

Junior Cee Niko Semo, 19, died of multiple gunshot wounds, according to a release from the medical examiner . Ashley Whitehead, 56, died of a gunshot wound to the pelvis. Carlos Israel Sanchez Villalba, 44, died of a gunshot wound to the torso.

Officials have said four other people were wounded and are stable. Officers found three victims in the direction the 15-year-old is alleged to have fired, including a 2-year-old and a person pushing a bicycle, according to court documents. The toddler, a boy, was “in satisfactory condition” and was discharged from Harborview Medical Center, spokeswoman Susan Gregg said Monday.

Some witnesses said they confused the sound of gunshots with firecrackers. In video on social media, dozens of attendees can be seen running from the bullets and stumbling over one another as they flee.

Food vendor Hana Kim watched in horror as some people took cover under her family’s tent. She heard people yelling and saw some run toward the commotion, frantically searching for loved ones.

“My first instinct was to make sure my parents were safe,” she said, adding that they are in their 60s. “We didn’t have the luxury to freeze.”

In video her family shared on Instagram, several police officers can be seen running toward the commotion while parents clutch their children.

Kim, who flew to Seattle from New York to help her family at the festival, said she “hit the ground” so hard while she was shielding herself that her knee bled. When she popped back up, Kim, her brother and his friend hurried to rush their parents toward the parking lot and evacuate a handful of people who took shelter at the stall.

“Everybody else abandoned everything — phones, wallets, cash boxes,” she said of the neighboring vendors. “Everything was on. Food was still on the grill.”

On Monday, a woman who briefly sheltered at Kim’s stall called to thank the family for keeping her safe. Kim was moved by the call but said she hadn’t quite processed everything that happened.

“It was sobering receiving that call, because, honestly, all of us are still in shock,” she said.