5 arrested, including one for alleged shooting, during Saturday riot

12/13/2020 12:30 pm

The Washington State Patrol, the Olympia Police Department, and the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office made several arrests at a large riot near the State Capitol on Saturday.

Three of the five arrests were for felony assault, and one of those was a 25-year-old man from Shoreline who was booked for Assault 1st Degree after he allegedly shot someone on the Capitol Campus.

The other two felony arrests were for Assault 2nd Degree and Assault 3rd Degree, according to jail records. Misdemeanor arrests were made for Assault 4th Degree and Intimidation with a Weapon. Several of those arrested will also have additional charges for Failure to Disperse.

The riot was a result of a clash between supporters of President Donald Trump and anti-fascist groups at around 12:30 pm Saturday. It is unclear at this time which “side” of the protest any of the five arrested persons belonged to.

The victim of the shooting was transported to a local hospital by a private party, according to the Washington State Patrol. According to scanner traffic, police and medics were blocked from entering the scene to render aid by the protest group. Their condition is not known.

There was also reports of an improvised explosive device found in the area, which the State Patrol called a “large commercial firework”. The firework had failed to detonate, and if it had detonated, it “could have caused significant injury”, WSP said. It was removed by the Bomb Squad and rendered safe.

Following the riot declaration and order to disperse, police used crowd control devices to force the group to disperse. They had mostly dispersed by 4:00 pm, according to scanner traffic.

This is a developing story, and will likely be updated as information develops.