Shot fired at Everett Mall; man arrested

EVERETT — A 26-year-old Everett man was arrested Tuesday evening after a shoplifting incident at the Everett Mall ended in gunfire.

The suspect suffered minor injuries while being disarmed by loss prevention officers during the 5:45 p.m. incident, Everett police spokesman Aaron Snell said.

The situation unfolded at the north end of the mall near the west entrance.

Louise Fellows, 72, of Lake Stevens, said she was returning a blouse to Macy’s when she heard “loud yelling and a struggle.”

She saw a man tackled by several mall security officers just inside the door. They were soon shouting at the man to drop his gun, Fellows said.

The man was yelling and struggling, too. In one hand he appeared to be holding a silver revolver, Fellows said.

“I saw the gun go off and there wasn’t anyone there (where it was aimed). It was so surreal to me,” she said.

Fellows said she jumped behind a counter. It all unfolded so quickly she didn’t see the man’s face.

“When I heard the cuffs go on, I figured everything was OK,” Fellows said.

Macy’s was locked down, and much of the parking lot was emptied while police investigated. Some other parts of the mall remained open on Tuesday evening, Snell said.

A handgun and bullet were recovered, and the suspect was “slightly injured,” he said.

People were running from the mall as officers arrived. Police treated the situation as a potential active-shooter scenario, Snell said. The Everett police south precinct is just a few blocks away.

Customers and employees were removed from the mall with police escorts.

Everett major crime detectives planned to interview the witnesses and employees, who in the hours after the shooting were being kept together away from crowds and confusion. A number could be seen behind the yellow crime-scene tape, waiting outside the building.

At one point, several Everett police officers also could be seen wrestling a man into the back of a patrol car. The man was wearing handcuffs. The man was expected to be booked for investigation of robbery and assault.

Shoplifting cases that turn into a scuffle often are prosecuted as robberies. Using a firearm during a robbery can add years to a sentence upon conviction.

For several hours, people continued to leave the mall, some carrying shopping bags. One family was seen walking to their vehicle with two small children. They all held hands.

Some drivers honked their horns at police and snapped cellphone pictures as they passed the scene.

Although witnesses reported that the suspect appeared to be with a woman before the scuffle broke out, police weren’t looking for any other suspects, Snell said.

Police also weren’t saying what the man was trying to steal.

Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Alan Dean, who is accused of the 1993 strangulation murder of 15-year-old Bothell girl Melissa Lee, appears in court during opening statements of his trial on Monday, March 18, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Guilty: Jury convicts Bothell man in long-unsolved 1993 killing

Even after police arrested Alan Dean in 2020, it was unclear if he would stand trial. He was convicted Thursday in the murder of Melissa Lee, 15.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
Everett police searching for missing child, 4

Ariel Garcia was last seen Wednesday at an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Drive. The child was missing under “suspicious circumstances.”

The rezoned property, seen here from the Hillside Vista luxury development, is surrounded on two sides by modern neighborhoods Monday, March 25, 2024, in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Despite petition, Lake Stevens OKs rezone for new 96-home development

The change faced resistance from some residents, who worried about the effects of more density in the neighborhood.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, left, introduces Xichitl Torres Small, center, Undersecretary for Rural Development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a talk at Thomas Family Farms on Monday, April 3, 2023, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Under new federal program, Washingtonians can file taxes for free

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene called the Direct File program safe, easy and secure.

Former Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy Jeremie Zeller appears in court for sentencing on multiple counts of misdemeanor theft Wednesday, March 27, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Ex-sheriff’s deputy sentenced to 1 week of jail time for hardware theft

Jeremie Zeller, 47, stole merchandise from Home Depot in south Everett, where he worked overtime as a security guard.

Everett
11 months later, Lake Stevens man charged in fatal Casino Road shooting

Malik Fulson is accused of shooting Joseph Haderlie to death in the parking lot at the Crystal Springs Apartments last April.

T.J. Peters testifies during the murder trial of Alan Dean at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Tuesday, March 26, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Bothell cold case trial now in jury’s hands

In court this week, the ex-boyfriend of Melissa Lee denied any role in her death. The defendant, Alan Dean, didn’t testify.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.