Detectives are trying to piece together what led to a shooting early Jan. 10 near Seattle’s Chinatown-International District (CID) that seriously injured a 27-year-old man.
Police say they were called around 2:45 a.m. to reports of shots fired near 12th Avenue South and South Main Street after a large crowd gathered when a nearby hookah lounge closed. A 34-year-old man who owns the business told officers he fired his handgun to try to break up the disturbance.
Officers took the owner to Seattle police headquarters, where he was interviewed by detectives with the Gun Violence Reduction Unit. He was later released.
Shortly after officers arrived on scene, they learned the victim had walked into Swedish Hospital with injuries consistent with a shotgun blast. He was later transferred to Harborview Medical Center and was listed in serious but stable condition.
Investigators believe an unidentified suspect armed with a shotgun shot the man in a parking lot across the street from the hookah lounge. How that shooting is connected to the earlier disturbance remains unclear, and no arrests have been made.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Seattle Police Department’s Violent Crimes Tip Line at 206-233-5000.