Police say 21-year-old Jinwei Yang was the shooter in Wednesday’s airgun incident on E. Howell. The Chinese national and student at Seattle Central was taken into custody after allegedly firing on a 29-year-old woman on the street below his third floor apartment. Yang was booked into jail for investigation of assault, malicious mischief and additional lesser charges. Prosecutors have until Monday to decide on charges. I erroneously reported earlier today that the assault and mischief charges had been dropped but the King County Prosecutors Office says charges are still being considered in the case.
Details of the police report included in Yang’s charging documents describe the scene officers encountered when they arrived at the E. Howell apartment building. The 29-year-old woman was pinned down behind her white Volkswagen Jetta from where she had made her phone call for help. The ground was covered with broken glass from the shot-out window of the car parked in front of the Jetta.
As responding officers surrounded the building, more shots were fired. They identified themselves to the shooter who stepped onto the balcony of the apartment and dropped the gun to his feet. Officers were able to force their way into the apartment and arrest Yang without further incident. The weapon was identified as a scoped Daisy 880 air rifle.
