On January 12th, just after 11:00 pm, a number of people called 911 to report a man walking down the street firing a handgun. The first reports stated that the man was walking northbound on 12th Avenue East from East Harrison to East Mercer . Additional reports then indicated that the suspect had turned on East Mercer and was walking in the 500 Block of 13th Avenue East. While he was walking, the suspect was randomly firing his handgun in the direction of several buildings, at the ground, and into the air. The suspect reloaded at least once and continued to fire indiscriminately, causing a significant risk to the public.
East Precinct officers responded and located the suspect on 15th Avenue at East Mercer. The 32 year old suspect was taken into custody and a .38 caliber revolver was recovered. Officers went back and retraced the suspect’s walking route. It does not appear that there was any damage done to any buildings or vehicles. Fortunately, there were no reports of any injuries. After the suspect was read his rights, he was asked why he fired the gun. He told officers he wanted to see if the gun still worked.
The 32 year old suspect was later booked into the King County Jail for discharge of a firearm and unlawful carry of a firearm.