Flashlight likely stopped bullet; shooting suspect arrested

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, August 23, 2016

MILL CREEK — Police believe a flashlight in a backpack saved a Mill Creek man from taking a bullet that could have injured or killed him.

The bullet was found wedged in the metal flashlight during an investigation into a shooting that was reported early Friday morning in Mill Creek.

A Bothell area man, 26, was arrested and booked into the Snohomish County Jail on Sunday for investigation of attempted second-degree murder.

After the initial report, police detained three people at gunpoint for questioning.

The suspect was found with a handgun, minus its magazine, tucked in his waistband.

The man who was shot told police he’d been on a stretch of the boardwalk along the North Creek Trail when he encountered three men. They reportedly chatted and shared some alcohol.

The victim said he showed the others his laser pointer and they expressed an interest in buying it from him.

At some point, the victim said one of the men pulled out a handgun. He did, too, but said it was an airsoft gun.

The victim said he feared he was being robbed so he jumped on his bike and rode away.

While riding off, he heard what sounded like a gunshot and felt a sting on his back. Police found a faint red mark on the man’s back but no signs of a gunshot wound.

After opening his backpack later that morning, the man who was shot called police. Officers found a bullet-sized hole in the backpack. The flashlight with the bullet in it was taken as evidence. A cellphone also had apparent damage caused by a bullet.

Police said if the flashlight and backpack hadn’t stopped it, the bullet could have penetrated the man’s vital organs.

When the suspect was interviewed, he alleged he drew his gun in self defense. He said he and the other man talked and both put away their handguns.

The suspect said the man had been given $100 for the laser pointer. He said he became angry when the man rode off because he didn’t have the laser pointer and the man was riding off with his money. Police found the laser pointer in the possession of one of the man’s friends.

The suspect told police he was drunk when he started chasing the man and that he drew his handgun. He said he fell down while he was running and the gun went off. He reportedly said he wasn’t sure how his finger got inside the trigger guard, which was not how he was trained.

The suspect had injuries consistent with falling, but police wrote in court papers that “it seems highly unlikely that he would … accidentally discharge his weapon even if he did fall and … that the shot would have been a perfect lethal shot had it not been for the items inside (the man’s) backpack.”

A handgun was taken into evidence after police obtained a search warrant of the suspect’s home.

Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446; stevick@heraldnet.com.