Rainier Beach neighbors on edge after more incidents of violence following mass shooting
SEATTLE - New body camera video from Seattle Police shows the efforts that went into saving multiple victims shot near a Safeway last Friday night.
The bullets were flying towards a group of volunteers who regularly offer food and resources to youth and those in need.
Police believe that two people opened fire, injuring five. As of Wednesday night, nobody has been taken into custody. Those who live near the Rainier Beach neighborhood are still on edge, not just because the shooters are still on the loose, but also because there have been more shots fired in the community over the past few days.
Since Friday, there have been at least two other shootings. Police say the guns they are recovering in some of these recent cases are getting more dangerous with modifications to inflict maximum damage. Witnesses reported hearing dozens of rounds fired.
"We heard about 20 to 25 gunshots, and we heard a ton of sirens," said Aaron Porcaro, a witness to Friday's shooting.
"It was a crazy chaotic scene when we arrived," said John Porcaro, a witness to Friday's shooting.
VIDEO: Seattle PD release footage of response to mass shooting in Rainier Beach
Five people were shot in the parking lot of a Rainier Beach Safeway Friday night, and four of those people had to be taken to the hospital.
Police Chief Adrian Diaz told residents at the South Precinct Advisory Council Meeting that it was an especially heinous crime because volunteers who were trying to help stop community violence were victimized themselves.
"Their community event is interrupted with violence and not just a couple rounds, but literally dozens and dozens of rounds in that community," said Diaz.
There have also been more shootings in the area. A few days ago, South Precinct Commander and Acting Captain Rob Brown said a person was shot in the buttocks. On Wednesday, a manhunt was underway after car thieves opened fire, damaging a window while trying to flee.
"The owner observed an attempted break-in and then proceeded to chase three suspects," said Brown.
Diaz says in the last six weeks, there have been 29 arrests, with 23 handguns and three rifles recovered.
"What we are seeing is some of the handguns are being switched into automatic guns and that’s what creating a lot more rounds being fired, and a lot more destruction, and we are recovering stuff we haven’t seen before, what we refer to as a 50 round drum magazine, which is 50 rounds that are fired in what looks like a tommy-style magazine," said Diaz.
He says a mobile precinct will be located in the Rainier Beach area through the end of summer and SPD will staff patrols there as well.
"We are not just seeing people who are shot and injured, that sometimes results in death, but we are just seeing the trauma that this causes in this community," said Diaz.
He says some of the violence that’s occurring in the Rainier Beach Community is spilling over from Auburn, Kent and Tukwila and vice versa. Diaz says that makes it very important to work with other police agencies to stop the violence.