RENTON, Wash. — The hunt is on for the suspects who opened fire on a party at a busy Renton park Friday night.
Four teens were sent to area hospitals. Two of them remain in critical condition at Harborview Medical Center.
There was a lot of gunfire there Friday night.
Renton police believe at least two weapons were involved. They found as many as 100 shell casings at this park, and some teens were running for their lives.
The peace of Ron Regis Park was shattered at about 11:30 p.m. Friday night. There was so much gunfire, it could be heard a half mile away.
“It was definitely gunshots, a lot,” said Ben Kinkade.
Kinkade was inside his apartment when he heard the volley of rounds.
“Yeah, not hearing that now and to what I heard, the duration that it lasted, I don’t know in minutes in total,” he said when he was told 100 casings were found. “It sounded like three or four. But it was a lot.”
A Renton police spokesperson says the teens had gathered as a send-off for some who are going off to college, but a large crowd grew after someone posted information on social media.
And then there was a dispute.
“And then that escalated into somebody pulling out a gun, shooting it up into the air,” said Cyndie Morris of the Renton Police. “And the information we also have is that someone else pulled out a gun and then kind of randomly shooting indiscriminately toward people that were running away.”
One carload ended up a half mile away at New Life Church with a wounded teenager inside.
That’s how they came to be in Kinkade’s neighborhood.
“And I really felt bad that someone was hurt,” Kinkade said. “Because it was clear someone was hurt. So sad.”
For him and his neighbors, it has brought violence uncomfortably close to home.
A neighbor who didn’t want to give his name said he is surprised.
“I am, actually, here,” he said. “I always hear about Seattle area but not here.”
There is a bit of good news. An 18-year-old male has been released from the hospital. The other three victims are females, 17, 18 and 19 years old.
Renton police say they need help solving this crime. It was dark, and a lot of these teens did not know each other.
If you know anything about what happened here, you’re asked to give Renton police a call.
©2022 Cox Media Group
