MARYSVILLE — A drug-fueled shooting in Marysville on Friday reportedly was over the attentions of a woman.
A 20-year-old Granite Falls man was shot twice and survived. He said he was confronting another man, who he believed was romantically pursuing his girlfriend, according to a police affidavit made public Wednesday. The other man has denied any interest in the woman.
Both men had friends with them at the time of the confrontation, some of whom were armed.
It happened about 4 a.m. Friday in the parking lot of the Albertsons at Marysville Town Center Mall. The victim initially declined to tell police who hurt him, according to the affidavit.
He later told detectives he’d asked the other man to meet him under the pretense of buying prescription anxiety medication from him.
When they were face-to-face, the victim reportedly said, “I’m not here to buy pills. I’m here to beat you up.”
The other man refused to step outside the car he was driving. The victim started recording the interaction on a cellphone. That’s when shots rang out. Then the car took off.
One bullet grazed the driver’s side door of another car. The owner, a bystander, was at the wheel. He was not hurt.
The cellphone video was recovered by police a short time later, according to the affidavit.
“The sounds of several gunshots were heard and a muzzle flash was seen coming from the back passenger seat,” detectives wrote. “You could then hear (the victim) crying that he had been shot. Several more gunshots were then heard from what sounded like a higher-caliber gun than the first set of shots.”
On Tuesday, three people were arrested in connection with the case, including a 20-year-old from Snohomish who is identified as the man the victim wanted to confront. The others were a 19-year-old Marysville man and a 17-year-old boy, who were allegedly passengers in the car.
Detectives also served a search warrant at a home on 66th Drive NE. The operation involved a helicopter. Police would not discuss the search warrant, citing the ongoing investigation, but court papers link it to the shooting.
All three suspects were booked on suspicion of first-degree assault and drive-by shooting. In court Wednesday, it was unclear who is accused of shooting the victim. Police were given conflicting statements, with the two younger suspects pointing fingers at one another. Those in the car also said they had been using methamphetamine.
Information on the 17-year-old was not available. The 20-year-old suspect was released. Everett District Court Judge Anthony Howard did not find probable cause to hold him.
The 19-year-old had his bail set at $50,000.
“He is out of control,” Howard said. “… He is hanging out with a violent crew.”
Investigators allege the 19-year-old supplied the weapons, including a .45 caliber handgun and a .22 caliber handgun. “He knew exactly what was happening,” deputy prosecutor Katelyn Thomason said.
The 19-year-old’s mother told the judge she has been trying to get him to enter treatment for drug addiction. In court, she yelled at her son, saying, “When is it going to stop? When? When you’re dead?”
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @rikkiking.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
