Bellevue police are asking for tips to locate the shooter who fired shots through windows of two Bellevue homes a mile apart, within a three-hour time span.
Police say the first 911 call came just before midnight on Sunday, Jan. 20, when someone randomly fired two bullets through a second-floor bathroom window on the 1000 block of Northup Way.
The bullets missed a 14-year-old girl by about a foot and crashed through a bathroom mirror. "I just woke up to loud bangs," said Christina, the girl's mother, who asked us not to use her last name, because her family is still rattled about the shooting.
"When I heard that I was in shock," she said. "I couldn't even move. I couldn't even say anything. I was like, 'What is going on here?'"
Bellevue police found shell casings where the shooter was standing--under the stairway of the apartment, which has dozens of units, and has never reported trouble with crime before that night.
"It's nice here," she said. "Who doesn't want to live here in this area?"
Three hours later, less than a mile away, police believe the same shooter fired two shots through the family room window of a home the 800 block of 164th Place Northeast, which neighbors describe as a usually quiet street.
Ten family members, including a baby were inside.
One of the bullets ripped through a family photo on the wall. Behind that, it went through the wall and out the other side. Police found the bullet around children's toys in the backyard.
Erick Rivera Sandoval says his family, which originated in El Salvador, was terrified. "We just want security, to be safe," he said. "I feel so sad because it's scary, and that never happened to us ever before, not even in our home country."
Bellevue police believe the shooter may the same person, but the places and the families are completely unrelated. Both families can't imagine who would indiscriminately fire bullets through their windows.
"We still can't sleep at night," said Christina. "Especially because we know the (shooter) hasn't been caught."
The investigation remains ongoing, and anyone with information is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
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