Deputies now believe mass shooting not intent of man arrested at Gorge Amphitheater

UPDATE: On Tuesday, the Grant County Sheriff’s Office said they have interviewed the suspect and they “don’t feel that his intent was to cause a mass shooting.”

Moody was arraigned in Grant County District Court on Monday on charges of a possession of a dangerous weapon. He plead not guilty and bail was set to $10,000.

PREVIOUS: Deputies with the Grant County Sheriff’s Office believe a mass shooting was avoided at the Gorge Amphitheater on Friday night.

At around 9 p.m. on Friday, deputies were notified by citizens and security of a man in the parking lot, inhaling something from a balloon and loading two 9 mm pistols from the trunk of his car.

Witnesses said the man hid one pistol in the rear of his waistband and the other in a holster.

Court documents obtained by KIRO 7′s Lauren Donovan show one witness also told authorities he “could see what appeared to be firearms accessories in the trunk of the vehicle.”

The man, later identified as 31-year-old Jonathan R. Moody of Ephrata, asked concertgoers what time the concert was ending and where people would be exiting.

Kyle Foreman of the Grant County Sheriff’s Office says security officers were able to detain Moody and take away his weapons before deputies arrived. He was arrested and booked into the Grant County Jail on two counts: possession of a dangerous weapon and unlawful carrying or handling of weapon.

The arresting officer reported, “Both firearms were loaded, and one round was in the chamber of each gun. It should be noted that Jonathan does have a valid concealed weapons permit.”

The Gorge Amphitheater was hosting “Bass Canyon,” an electronic dance music festival with nearly 25,000 people attending.

“It’s like dropping a large city into Grant County,” said Foreman.

No one was injured, but attendees Jessica Tucker and Sam Baumgartner feel like they had a close call.

“It was scary,” said Baumgartner. “I was just surprised, I didn’t expect that at all.”

“I was just shocked and glad that everyone was safe and that nobody got hurt,” said Tucker.

©2022 Cox Media Group