First a fatal shooting, now a stabbing, at Southcenter mall. I'm thinking that's a place to be avoided.
Shoplifter stabs security guard at Southcenter mall
By Eric Pryne
Seattle Times staff reporter
A plainclothes security guard was stabbed at Westfield Southcenter mall Sunday night by a shoplifter he tried to detain, Tukwila police said.
The guard, who suffered minor injuries to his hand and arm, was treated at an area hospital and released.
Police said the incident occurred around 6:18 p.m. at the Sears outlet at the mall. After stabbing the guard, the shoplifter fled on foot but was taken into custody later in a nearby restaurant parking lot, police said.
The suspect, a 46-year-old Monroe man, remained in custody late Sunday night.
The stabbing occurred 15 days after Diaquan Jones, 16, was killed and Jermaine McGowan, 15, was wounded in a shooting that shut down the mall for several hours.
Barry Lee Saunders Jr., 21, has been charged with second-degree murder and first-degree assault in the Nov. 22 incident. He was arrested in Portland Nov. 26.
Saunders has waived extradition and could be arraigned in King County Superior Court as soon as this week. A lawyer representing Saunders has said his client thought he was acting in self-defense and to protect his brother when he fired a handgun in the crowded mall.
That shooting stemmed from a fight that began after gang signs were flashed, according to police. |
