SEATTLE — A student was shot and killed inside Ingraham High School in North Seattle on Tuesday morning and a suspect is in custody, according to Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell.
Police said they received reports of shots fired at the school at 1819 North 135th Street at 9:55 a.m. on Tuesday. The school went into lockdown to protect students.
Students told KIRO 7 two people starting fighting in a hallway when things quickly escalated and at least five shots were fired.
Officers entered the school and found one victim with a gunshot wound.
“Four minutes. Within 4 minutes we were (at the school) performing CPR,” Seattle Police Chief Adrien Diaz said during a news conference. However, the victim could not be saved.
Seattle Public Schools assistant superintendent of public affairs Beverly Redmond said the victim was a student.
“We do not believe this was a random act of violence,” Redmond said in a statement released late Tuesday morning.
Officers searched the area for a suspect. During a news conference at about 11:05 a.m., Diaz said that someone had been arrested.
Witnesses told KIRO 7 that a male suspect was arrested at a nearby bus stop on Aurora Avenue North near 145th. A dozen officers armed with semi-automatic rifles swarmed the area and arrested the suspect, who did not resist, according to witnesses.
According to Diaz, a gun was recovered when the suspect was arrested. He did not confirm if the gun was the weapon used during the incident.
Meanwhile, hundreds of anxious parents packed a school parking lot, waiting to be reunited with their children. The process was slow, but once reunited, there were tears and embraces.
“It’s insane. I mean, what type of world are we living in,” a parent told KIRO 7.
Classes are canceled on Wednesday and Thursday.
Diaz said investigators will spend the next several days reviewing surveillance video at the school, speaking to witnesses, and running ballistics tests on the gun found with the suspect.
Note: A previous version of this story stated that the suspect arrested was a student. Police have not officially confirmed that information and this article has been adjusted to reflect that.
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Dozens of parents waiting to be reunited with their children. @KIRO7Seattle pic.twitter.com/HmzvtxgTpL
— Briseida Holguin (@BriseidaHolguin) November 8, 2022
Police are directing parents to a family staging area on campus, that line of parents getting longer and longer. @KIRO7Seattle https://t.co/k9vIgGgEK6 pic.twitter.com/A87Q6jpiYc
— Briseida Holguin (@BriseidaHolguin) November 8, 2022
IHS FAMILIES: Reunification will start in appx 10 minutes. Students will be released one classroom at a time to the auditorium, where families can sign them out. If a student is 18, they will be allowed to leave as long as they check out. Transportation plan details to come.
— Seattle Police Dept. (@SeattlePD) November 8, 2022
There was gunfire reported at Ingraham High School this morning. One student is believed to have been shot.
— Seattle Public Schools (@SeaPubSchools) November 8, 2022
The campus is currently on lockdown. Seattle Police are on the scene and working with the district’s Safety and Security team. SPD is searching the area for the suspect. pic.twitter.com/8IarrjevxP
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