EVERETT — Police believe a simmering rivalry between street gangs was behind a shooting Sunday that sent a 15-year-old boy to the hospital.
The teen, shot in the chest and expected to survive, was a passenger in a pickup truck hit by gunfire.
The shooting reportedly occurred when rival gang members encountered each other at a stop light. The violence happened at the busy intersection of 112th Street SW and Fourth Avenue W, south of Everett, according to a report Snohomish County sheriff’s detectives wrote to support jailing an Everett man.
Juan Daniel Beteran-Monrroy, 18, was arrested for investigation of first-degree assault and drive-by shooting. Detectives allege he is a gang member who goes by the name “Scooby.” His bail was set at $500,000 Tuesday.
The shooting was reported around 10:30 p.m. Sunday when a pickup truck allegedly carrying members of a rival gang encountered Beteran-Monrroy, who was at the wheel of a Honda Accord.
There were four people in the truck. They later told detectives they’d been looking for Beteran-Monrroy, hoping to deliver a beating in retaliation for some past offense, detectives wrote.
They encountered him in his Honda, stopped at a red light on 112th Street SW. When Beteran-Monrroy realized who was in the truck pulled up alongside, he allegedly pointed a firearm in their direction.
The people in the truck told detectives they threw a knife and metal baseball bat at Beteran-Monrroy’s vehicle, hoping to disarm him. As they sped away, bullets struck the truck’s tailgate and back window, according to detectives.
Police were summoned when the people in the truck sought medical help for the wounded 15-year-old. He was taken to Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center for treatment.
The suspect was arrested about 20 minutes after the shooting and less than a mile away. In the backseat of the car deputies reportedly found a military-style semiautomatic rifle they believe was used in the shooting.
Detectives also recovered a knife and bat near the intersection where the incident occurred.
The violence appears to be part of an on-going dispute between two local gangs, sheriffs’ detective Brad Walvatne wrote.
“From my investigative experience and knowledge, I am aware of several shootings that have occurred involving these two gangs in the Snohomish County area over the last couple years,” he said.
Scott North: 425-339-3431; north@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @snorthnews
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