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2026 Seattle Center shooting

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2026 Seattle Center shooting
Memorial at the International Fountain for victims of the shooting
Map
Location47°37′21″N 122°21′09″W / 47.6225°N 122.3525°W / 47.6225; -122.3525
Seattle Center
Seattle, Washington, US
DateJuly 26, 2026 (2026-07-26)
c. 6:00 p.m. (PDT; UTC-07:00)
Attack type
WeaponsFour, including a 9mm Polymer80 ghost gun
Deaths3 (including a perpetrator)
Injured4
No. of participants
3
ChargesFirst-degree assault

On July 26, 2026, a mass shooting occurred during the Bite of Seattle festival at Seattle Center in Seattle, Washington, United States. Three people were killed and four others were wounded.[1][2] The shooting involved an exchange of gunfire between two groups and at least three suspected shooters have been identified. A 15-year-old suspect was arrested at the scene, a 19-year-old suspected shooter was killed, and at least one other suspected shooter remains unidentified.[3]

Background

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Bite of Seattle is an annual food festival held at the Seattle Center. The festival began in 1982 and attracts food and retail vendors, performers and hundreds of thousands of visitors over three days.[2]

Shooting

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The shooting occurred shortly before 6 p.m. outside the Seattle Center Armory, during the final hours of the three-day festival. A food vendor's livestream captured the beginning of the shooting.[4] The Seattle Police Department stated that preliminary evidence indicated two individuals exchanged gunfire in the crowded festival area, striking multiple bystanders.

One suspected shooter surrendered to police at the scene and was taken to Seattle Police Department Headquarters for questioning. The other fled, and a search of the Seattle Center grounds did not locate them.[2]

Victims

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Two were pronounced dead at the scene, and five others were initially reported wounded. A wounded victim later died at Harborview Medical Center. Seven people were struck by gunfire. Carlos Israel Sanchez Villalba (aged 44) and Junior Cee Niko Semo (aged 19) were pronounced dead at the scene.[5] Ashley Whitehead (aged 56), died after being taken to Harborview Medical Center.[6] Four other people, including a two-year-old boy, were wounded.[7][8]

Investigation

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Police continued to search for a second suspect and have not released a description as of July 27. Police said that they did not believe there was an ongoing threat to the public. Seattle mayor Katie Wilson initially stated two suspects were in custody, but her office later corrected the statement, stating only one person had been detained.[9][10][11][12][1] Police have stated that they believe there were "at least three shooters".[13][7] One of the suspects, a 15-year-old year old boy, was charged with first-degree assault, and prosecutors said they sought to charge him as an adult.[14]

Detectives from the Seattle Police Department's Homicide Unit and Gun Prevention Unit were assigned to the investigation. Investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have also been assigned to the investigation to support local law enforcement.[6][2]

Two days after the shooting, police said that the 15-year-old suspect was armed with a 9 mm ghost gun from Polymer80 during the shooting. The gun had been modified with an illegal extended magazine. Police had additionally recovered two other weapons from the scene and located 14 shell casings that had been fired by four weapons with two different calibers.[15]

The shooting is believed by investigators to be gang related, and that one of the fatalities, Junior Cee Niko Semo, had exchanged gunfire with the 15-year-old suspect before he was killed by multiple gunshot wounds.[16]

Response

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Police and security officers assigned to the festival heard the gunfire and responded within seconds of the shooting. According to Assistant Seattle Police Chief Daniel Harris, officers witnessed one of the suspected shooters firing.[2] Officers rendered emergency aid to the wounded before Seattle Fire Department personnel arrived. Washington governor Bob Ferguson deployed members of the Washington State Patrol Special Weapons and Tactics team to assist local authorities.[citation needed]

While emergency personnel treated the victims and police secured the area, parts of Seattle Center were evacuated,[17] including from the Pacific Science Center.[12] Multiple attractions around the Seattle Center temporarily closed in the aftermath of the shooting, as well as the Seattle Center Monorail.[18] Harborview Medical Center was placed on partial lockdown amid heavy police presence in the area.[12]

The Bite of Seattle was cancelled. Vendors reported that their booths had been looted, with equipment and cash stolen, after they were allowed to return to the site.[19]

Wilson, in a press briefing on July 27, described the shooting and its impact on the community and called for a cooperative gun violence strategy.[20] Police chief Shon Barnes was criticized for his department's slow release of information related to the shooting as well as his own absence from the city to attend a conference. Barnes announced his resignation on July 30 amid a dispute with Wilson.[21]

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 Weisend, Alexis; Gutman, David; Vansynghel, Margo; Roberts, Paul (July 26, 2026). "Mass shooting at Seattle Center leaves 2 dead, toddler wounded". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Johnson, Eugene (July 27, 2026). "Shooting at a Seattle food festival leaves 2 dead and wounds 5, fire official says". AP News. Archived from the original on July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  3. ↑ Johnson, Gene (July 27, 2026). "Police search for second suspect following Seattle food festival shooting that killed 3". Associated Press. Archived from the original on July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 28, 2026.
  4. ↑ "Food vendor's livestream captures start of Seattle shooting". CNN. July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 29, 2026.
  5. ↑ Bragg, Julianna; Mascarenhas, Lauren (July 27, 2026). "15-year-old detained in Seattle food festival shooting that left 3 dead and toddler hospitalized". CNN. Retrieved July 28, 2026.
  6. 1 2 Pritchard, Brian (July 27, 2026). "Gun Violence at Seattle Center Takes Three Lives". SPD Blotter. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  7. 1 2 "Two people killed, several injured in shooting at Seattle food festival, authorities say". CNN. July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  8. ↑ "Two dead and five injured, including a young boy, in Seattle Center shooting". NBC News. July 26, 2026. Archived from the original on July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  9. ↑ "2 killed, multiple injured, including child, during shooting at Bite of Seattle event". KOMO. July 27, 2026. Archived from the original on July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  10. ↑ Spangenthal-Lee, Jonah (July 26, 2026). "Mayor Wilson's Statement on Seattle Center Shootings". Office of the Mayor. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  11. ↑ Graham, Chris; Mann, Toby (July 27, 2026). "Seattle shooting: Two killed and five injured in shooting at food festival near Space Needle". BBC News. Archived from the original on July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  12. 1 2 3 "Live: Shooting reported at Bite of Seattle". The Seattle Times. July 26, 2026. Archived from the original on July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  13. ↑ español, GENE JOHNSON Leer en (July 27, 2026). "Court documents reviewed by AP say there were at least 3 shooters at Seattle food festival". AP News. Archived from the original on July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  14. ↑ Campbell, Katie (July 29, 2026). "15-year-old Seattle Center shooting suspect charged with first-degree assault; prosecutors seek adult trial". KUOW. Retrieved July 31, 2026.
  15. ↑ Johnson, Gene; Rush, Claire (July 28, 2026). "15-year-old arrested at Seattle food festival shooting was armed with a ghost gun, police say". Associated Press. Archived from the original on July 28, 2026. Retrieved July 28, 2026.
  16. ↑ Jensen, Jim (July 28, 2026). "Who was Junior Cee Niko Semo? One of the Bite of Seattle shooters". KCPQ. Archived from the original on July 28, 2026. Retrieved July 28, 2026.
  17. ↑ "2 killed, multiple injured, including child, during shooting at Bite of Seattle event". KATU. July 27, 2026. Retrieved July 27, 2026.
  18. ↑ Garrett, Shawn (July 27, 2026). "What is open and closed at Seattle Center after deadly mass shooting". KING-TV. Retrieved July 28, 2026.
  19. ↑ Vinh, Tan (July 30, 2026). "Bite of Seattle shooting puts local food vendors in rough spot". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on July 30, 2026. Retrieved July 30, 2026.
  20. ↑ Jensen, Jim (July 27, 2026). "Bite of Seattle shooting: Here's what Mayor Katie Wilson said". FOX 13 Seattle. Archived from the original on July 28, 2026. Retrieved July 30, 2026.
  21. ↑ Deshais, Nicholas; Carter, Mike (July 30, 2026). "Seattle police chief resigns days after shooting". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on July 30, 2026. Retrieved July 30, 2026.
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