Seattle police arrest suspect following 'arbitrary' stabbings of 10 people in Chinatown-International District

Updated on 11/12/2024 at 12:55 p.m.

After 10 people were stabbed over two days in Seattle, police have a suspect in custody. A judge set bail for the man, who has not yet been formally charged, at $2 million on Saturday.

Five people were stabbed hours apart from each other in the same area of the Chinatown-International District Thursday, followed by a mass-stabbing incident on Friday with five victims.

All but one victim was sent to Harborview Medical Center. One person was sent to the hospital with the knife still in him.

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At a press briefing Friday afternoon, Deputy Chief Eric Barden called the stabbings "random" and a "horrific tragedy."

“The arbitrary nature of these assaults makes it likely that these are similar … only one of the incidents was a robbery in which a cell phone was taken," he said. "The rest of them were random attacks, as this appears to be today.”

Police responded to an incident at 1:35 a.m. on Thursday near 12th Avenue South and South King Street, where a 52-year-old woman was stabbed multiple times. She was taken to Harborview Medical Center.

Shortly after noon that same day, police responded to another stabbing at 8th Avenue and South Jackson Street, not far from the earlier stabbing. A 32-year-old man was stabbed multiple times and was also transported to Harborview.

Police got a description of the suspect and a K9 unit was brought in, but that search was unsuccessful.

At 8 p.m. that evening, police were back at 8th Avenue and Jackson Street where a 37-year-old man was stabbed multiple times.

SPD noted that while searching the area, they arrested a 34-year-old man carrying a knife and who had a felony warrant for possession of a stolen vehicle. But the stabbings continued after he was taken into custody.

At 8:39 p.m., officers were called to the 800 block of South King Street where a 60-year-old driver was slashed while inside of his car, under the I-5 overpass. The suspect forcibly opened the car door, attempted to stab the man in the chest, but cut the top of his hand instead. The driver was able to close the door, but his cell phone was stolen during the scuffle. The description of that suspect was similar to the previous report.

The stabbing spree continued early on Friday. Officers responded to an assault near 12th and Jackson Street at 1 a.m., in which a 53-year-old man was stabbed in the neck.

Around 2 p.m. on Friday, a man reportedly stabbed five people in the Chinatown-International District around 10th Avenue South and South Jackson Street. Officers arrested the man and recovered a knife near the scene.

"The suspect was arrested without incident," Barden said.

That suspect, described by police as being between 30 to 40 years old, was booked into King County Jail Friday. Police said they don't yet know if all of the stabbings are related.

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“It’s certainly plausible that the suspect in today’s stabbing is the same suspect involved with the previous five incidents, but the investigation is ongoing," Barden said.

He added that police will have a greater presence in the area where the stabbings occurred.

This story has been updated to include new information about the suspect's bail.