Teen FIRES BACK in Self-Defense — Seattle Prosecutors Still Haven’t Charged Other Gunmen

Liberty Check

• A 15-year-old claims he fired back in self-defense during a deadly Seattle gang shootout — yet he remains the ONLY person charged more than a month later
• Police identified two persons of interest after reviewing 450 hours of video, but prosecutors say NO other cases have been referred to them
• The teen’s shots didn’t kill anyone — but he faces years behind bars while other suspected gunmen walk free

A 15-year-old boy accused of opening fire during a deadly gang shootout at a crowded Seattle food festival claims he was defending himself after unidentified gunmen began shooting at him and his friend. More than a month after the July 26 bloodshed at the Bite of Seattle, the teenager remains the only person charged in connection with the violence that left three dead and four wounded — including a 2-year-old boy.

The teen allegedly pulled a handgun from a pouch and returned fire after two suspects began shooting toward him at the Seattle Center Armory near the Space Needle. Festivalgoers scattered as gunfire erupted, leaving 19-year-old Niko-Semo, a 44-year-old man, and a 56-year-old woman dead in what police described as a gang-related shootout.

His public defender, Hong Tran, said several eyewitnesses backed up the boy’s version of events.

“Law enforcement has interviewed several eyewitnesses to the shooting who confirmed that [the teen] reached for a firearm after the shooting started,” Tran wrote in an Aug. 28 memorandum.

Tran said the boy had gone to the festival to enjoy the food and was standing near Niko-Semo when the first shots rang out. Witnesses observed the teen pull a firearm from a pouch and shoot in the direction of the incoming fire, according to the defense filing.

Officers working the festival raced toward the gunfire and arrested the teen at the scene.

“I was getting shot at,” the teen told officers, according to the defense filing. “I fired back in self-defense.”

Yet prosecutors paint a dramatically different picture, accusing him of recklessly firing into an area packed with adults and children.

“There is no greater threat to the community than a person indiscriminately firing into a crowd of adults and children who only wanted to attend and enjoy Bite of Seattle,” Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Logan Bryant wrote in a filing opposing the teen’s release.

The teen faces first-degree assault with a deadly weapon and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm by a person under 18. Prosecutors also filed a firearm sentencing enhancement with the assault charge.

His shots were not responsible for any of the three deaths, according to court records. Prosecutors said the boy was carrying a Polymer80 “ghost gun” fitted with an extended magazine capable of holding more than 30 rounds.

The privately assembled weapon did not have a standard serial number and allegedly carried a vanity plate reading “1 SHOT 1 KILL.”

Investigators recovered at least four guns at the scene, including weapons allegedly tied to the teen and Niko-Semo. Police have been testing the firearms as they work to determine who else was involved in the deadly exchange.

The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office told Fox News Digital that police have not brought prosecutors any cases involving anyone else in the shooting.

“Seattle Police are handling the investigation,” the office said. “No other cases from the Bite of Seattle shooting other than the charged case involving the 15-year-old have been referred by police investigators to the KCPAO.”

Police have, however, identified two potential persons of interest after combing through roughly 450 hours of video, Interim Seattle Police Chief Andre Sayles told local media. Sayles cautioned that police have not determined whether the two people opened fire.

“I can say that we are looking at two potential persons of interest in this incident, not saying that they are the shooters or anything of that nature, but people that we have identified that we need to have a conversation with,” Sayles said.

No additional arrests have been announced. Sayles said detectives are moving closer to interviews and could make arrests if the evidence supports them.

The teen’s attorney asked a judge to release him to electronic monitoring at his father’s home. The judge rejected the request last week and ordered him to remain in custody.

The shooting also sparked scrutiny over the city’s delayed public updates and decision not to use its emergency alert system. Days later, Mayor Katie Wilson accepted then-Police Chief Shon Barnes’ resignation after he was asked to step down during a meeting with the mayor, five sources said.

Barnes later defended his response and said he followed department protocol.

The teen is due back in juvenile court for a status hearing in October. Prosecutors will ask a judge in November to move the case to adult court.

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