Update: GameStop armed robbery suspect arrested

| Crime | Highland Park | WS breaking news

(photo added 3:40 pm)
ORIGINAL REPORT: Thanks to those who have called/e-mailed about the major police presence in the 16th/Trenton vicinity (map) and beyond — police tell us they are looking for an armed-robbery suspect who got away on foot. Working to get info on what/where was robbed. 3 PM UPDATE: More information from Detective Nick Bauer at SWP: Officers are going through neighborhoods in the late 8000s/9000 block areas of 16th and 17th looking for the robber, who held up the GameStop store on Roxbury with a gun. He even pointed the gun at an officer at one point but managed to get away. We’ll keep you updated on the search as we find out more. 3:18 PM UPDATE: Lt. Steve Paulsen just confirmed that the suspect has been arrested. 3:33 PM UPDATE: GameStop has this sign on the front door.

Police were still inside the store interviewing employees about the incident as of 3:20 pm. We have a phone call and email into their coporate headquarters in Texas to see when the store might reopen.

Michael June 5, 2008 (3:00 pm)

WEST SEATTLE – Seattle police and a SWAT team are combing an area near White Center for a suspect in an armed robbery in nearby White Center.

Officers responded to the area after a report of an armed robbery at a White Center store.

A foot chase followed, but officers lost the suspect in the vicinity of 16th Street SW and SW Henderson Street. He was reported to be armed with a dark-colored handgun and was wearing a purple or blue hoody with gray pants.

WSB June 5, 2008 (3:05 pm)

thanks, as posted above we now have more info from police. will continue to update as we get it, we also have someone out in the area.

d June 5, 2008 (3:08 pm)

the school just let out – there are kids all over the place and the helicopters are right above us.

add June 5, 2008 (3:11 pm)

Why would they let the kids out of school while this is going on??

mike June 5, 2008 (3:15 pm)

omg :( I live right there

BFG June 5, 2008 (3:15 pm)

I think the drama is over cops are leaving.

HighlandParker June 5, 2008 (3:16 pm)

Jeez! Did the police mess this one up! I live right in the middle of all this, and the police had residents and school kids and cars and school buses turned every which way. There was NO coordination. Some cars were getting by only to be yelled at by the next cop down the “blockade.” Kids were walking by behind cops distracted by the mail lady. What a mess! There was so much gridlock at one point that cars couldn’t clear the street for the cps to get through. I’m getting a gun. We’re all on our own in West Seattle now.

d June 5, 2008 (3:18 pm)

they got the guy. officer at 16 and trenton just told me.

geezus.

j June 5, 2008 (3:19 pm)

schools are a number of blocks away–a helicopter makes a lot of noise and is ‘above’ a wide area. i saw police establish a tight perimeter and route kids around the trouble.

WSB June 5, 2008 (3:19 pm)

just confirmed by lt. paulsen and we updated the post with word of the arrest.

microwiz June 5, 2008 (4:25 pm)

Is there any word on the alleged robber’s identity?

WSB June 5, 2008 (4:41 pm)

No. That sort of information is generally not available at this point in an investigation unless some sort of incredibly unusual circumstance exists (celebrity or … ?).

elgrego June 5, 2008 (5:02 pm)

Wow… if this was any other day I’d be right there at that exact time driving to/from the dog park. Guess I should be glad that volunteering at KEXP negated my trip to the dog park today.

wssince1966 June 5, 2008 (6:24 pm)

The police didn’t mess this one up, they rocked it. Too bad you cannot appreciate their hard work and courage in going after and catching an armed robber within minutes after the crime.
Perhaps you would prefer that they just let the criminals go so the kids can be really safe?
The criminals are the bad guys, not the police.

Liza June 5, 2008 (6:55 pm)

I was in the area when the police were still looking for the perpetrator. Great job on catching the guy, all props to the police, but I drove right past a cop who wasn’t occupied at the time and could easily have flagged me down and warned me to be sure my doors were locked.
I would like to have known an armed nut-job was on the loose. I know the cops are busy….I’m just sayin’.

RS June 5, 2008 (9:48 pm)

I’m sorry, you want a cop to flag down people driving through what may or may not be their neighborhood and tell them to lock their doors?? Because I’m sure that wouldn’t hold up traffic, add to the panic, or waste police time at all.

HighlandParker June 5, 2008 (11:06 pm)

wssince1966, were you on the block when this police activity occurred? I witnessed school kids strolling right by cops who had moments earlier shouted at me to, “get back inside!” when I just poked my head out to see what was going on. The police wouldn’t let me leave my house for 90 minutes (not “minutes,” 90 of them) while school kids were walking past my house. I witnessed the cops directing traffic directly into other re-routed traffic such that the gridlock was so bad for 10 minutes that the cops were freaking out at all the drivers they had directed into each other. I didn’t post anything about the cops’ courage, which I hope is stronger than their attention to detail. It was 90 minutes of non-stop mayhem created by the police. I’m sorry for all you blindly-supportive police-boosters out there, but you REALLY need to look at the Seattle/King County justice system. The cops in West Seattle are part of the problem, not the solution. Join me, and others who mistrust and down-right fear the police at a forum on THURS JULY 10, at American Friends Service Committee, University District, Seattle; PEOPLE’S PANEL ON POLICE ACCOUNTABILITY. The Seattle/King County Branch of the NAACP has reviewed citizen complaints from nearly every jurisdiction within King County. Many of these complaints have caused serious concerns about police misconduct and disparate treatment of people of color and the poor. As a result of our concerns, we are announcing a state of emergency as it pertains to police accountability and inequitable treatment of people of color and the poor. The People’s Panel on Police Accountability is comprised of a diverse team of community members who will assess this county-wide problem and prepare possible solutions. The public hearings are designed for individuals in the community to present confidential testimony on their personal experiences with law enforcement. These stories will be used to compile a holistic, community-centered assessment of practices of police misconduct throughout Seattle and south King County, and to foster a collective call for police accountability. info KL Shannon klorganizer@gmail.com or 206-854-5462

Sage K June 5, 2008 (11:19 pm)

I was wondering what some of that was about. I was heading to Westwood Village at about 2:45pm and saw police cars pulled over a little after Trenton on Delridge. So instead of trying to by pass them, I turned off at Trenton street.
.
I think this was related as I heard helicopters overhead. And I saw a ton of kids out and about.
.
But good on them for such a quick response time and apprehending the suspect.
.
But maybe it would have been better to keep the schools in lock down for a while longer unless they were bussed.

wssince1966 June 5, 2008 (11:47 pm)

Police the police. What a novel and original idea. If I were a cop and read Highlandparker’s blather, I would be especially motivated to go out and put my life on the line to serve and protect. Maybe they should have asked you for permission to seek and arrest the armed thug on the block. I am willing to bet that Highlandparker will spend at least three paragraphs of diatribe in response.
Thank you officers for taking care of our community. I would not want your job.

HighlandParker June 5, 2008 (11:54 pm)

Let’s see if I can do this in less than 3 paragraphs. wssince1966, were you on my block when today’s police activity occurred?

karen June 6, 2008 (7:03 am)

To WSB. Thank You! I came home just as this was happening. The police cars were everywhere. I stopped and asked if I should not go home for a while and was told it was OK to go home. As I was getting out of the car with the children, a policeman at the end of the block told us to get into the house as soon as possible.

It really scared me as I had no idea why. Then the helicopters were overhead and I still had no idea why.

WSB was right on it giving us the information we needed!! From the amount of activity I was concerned about a bomb threat (OK maybe crazy but still) or a nut job with a big gun. I live close enough that a stray bullet or shrapnel could reach here. So, I felt much better knowing what was happening and also knowing when it was over.

And there was nothing in the mainstream news!! If it hadn’t been for you guys I would have been left wondering what had gone on.

THANK YOU WSB!!!

Adam June 6, 2008 (9:26 am)

There sure seem to be a lot of WSB readers right around the 16th and Trenton area! (Me too…)

mike June 6, 2008 (9:43 am)

HighlandParker,

I think you miss the point that this was solved without any shots fired. My neighbor said he saw the standoff between the police officer and the guy. The police officer with a gun pointed at her from ~5ft away held her ground and did not shoot the guy. Then despite the previous incident where he threatened a police officer with a gun the swat team flushed him out of a house without shots. I’d say thats an impressive display of restraint of force. I’m not even sure how they could have reacted any better? They got there quick (i saw cars come from downtown), they immediately limited the guys escape route, and then they caught him.

I would readily agree with you on other incidents in other areas; not this one, not this area.

WScondodweller June 6, 2008 (2:29 pm)

I too went through the site at about 2:45. While the police were doing their job, I skirted through the streets until I saw no blue lights and went about my business.

BEFORE I drove into the area, I saw and heard the helicopters hovering at a distance and first:
Locked my car doors then: tried to drive away from the area I thought could be involved. After I was in motion, I saw the helicopter to the north so was alert for police activity.

The point: helicopters usually do not hover for a good event, be aware and take care of yourself, don’t expect the police to take their energies from the job at hand to hold your hand.