SEATTLE — Police said a man was killed in a shooting near T-Mobile Park early Tuesday morning.
The Seattle Police Department (SPD) said the shooting happened near the intersection of South Walker Street and 1st Avenue South in Seattle's SODO neighborhood. Officers found a male victim dead at the scene, which is less than half a mile away from T-Mobile Park.
Investigators have not released what led up to the shooting or any information on the suspects involved.
This is the second shooting in the SODO neighborhood in the last 24 hours. The other shooting was reported along 1st Avenue South and South Massachusetts Street. Two men were injured in an exchange of gunfire resulting from an alleged attempted robbery on Monday.
In the Monday shooting, police said a 48-year-old man was on his motorcycle at the intersection when two other men on motorcycles approached him and attempted to rob him. The attempted robbers allegedly demanded the man give up his clothing and his motorcycle, but he refused.
A physical altercation followed between all three men. The 48-year-old and a 29-year-old suspect drew weapons and shot. The other man, a 38-year-old suspect, was uninjured and was arrested at the scene.
Witnesses who spoke to KING 5 at the scene said they saw the three men in a verbal altercation that escalated into a physical fight. Bystander video showed two of the bikers fighting with the third man who was on the ground shortly before a shot went off.
Erin Goodman, the executive director of the SODO Business Improvement Area, said violence in the neighborhood is becoming a trend.
"It's very quick, and it's happening so fast," Goodman said. "When a shootout happens on First Avenue at 3 o'clock in the afternoon that's extremely concerning."
According to SPD's crime dashboard, as of June 30, there were 33 violent crimes in the SODO neighborhood.
"Businesses that have survived COVID are having a really hard time dealing with the significant increase in property crime and violent crime in this neighborhood," Goodman said.
One of those businesses is Gallery B612, located between the spots where the violent crimes took place along 1st Avenue.
"I'm hoping that it's not like crime is increasing but it feels like it is," said Aleen Caeli, assistant curator for Gallery B612, "especially because it's my first time hearing about something like this happening so close."
Caeli has been working at the gallery since the beginning of the year and is urging the city to do more to crack down on crime throughout the neighborhood.
"I hope that the city does something because there's a lot of local businesses and I'm sure nobody would want to feel unsafe while they're working," Caeli said.