Motive sought in fatal shooting at
Washington state mall after arrest
Send a link to a friend
[September 26, 2016]
(Reuters) - Investigators were
working to determine what led a gunman to open fire and kill five people
in a department store at a Washington state mall, police said on Sunday
after arresting a 20-year-old suspect in the deadly rampage.
Police took Turkish-born Arcan Cetin into custody on Saturday evening in
Oak Harbor, about 30 miles (48 km) southwest of Burlington where the
shooting occurred on Friday night.
Cetin's demeanor when apprehended was "zombie like," police said at a
news conference. He was unarmed and did not run from officers, they
said.
A motive for the rampage remains unclear and Cetin, who is due to appear
in court on Monday, has not been charged.
The FBI said while they had no indication the attack was a "terrorism
act," it could not rule out that possibility.
Cetin, who police said is a legal, permanent resident of the United
States, is accused of opening fire in the cosmetics section of a Macy's
department store at Cascade Mall, killing four women and a man.
Surveillance video showed the suspect entering the mall without a rifle
but he was later spotted on video in the store brandishing a weapon,
police said. The rifle was recovered at the mall.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2016/Sep/26/images/ads/current/culligan_sda_daily_FESTIVALS_2016.png)
The attack followed a series of violent outbursts at shopping centers
across the United States, including the stabbing of nine people at a
Minnesota center last weekend.
It comes at a time of heightened tensions in the United States after a
succession of seemingly random attacks in public places, ranging from a
gay night club in Orlando, Florida, to a Planned Parenthood clinic in
Colorado.
Investigators planned to search Cetin's Oak Harbor residence, vehicle
and interview witnesses on Sunday to collect evidence and "build as good
as a case as you can," said Sergeant Mark Francis, a spokesman for the
Washington State Police.
[to top of second column] |
![](../images/092616pics/news_d5.jpg)
Arcan Cetin, 20, of Oak Harbor is seen in a Washington State
Department of Licensing photo released by the Washington State
Patrol after they announced his capture in relation to a mass
shooting in Burlington, Washington, U.S. September 24, 2016.
Washington State Patrol/Handout via Reuters.
![](../images/ads/current/richardson_lda_090916.png)
Police have reports that Cetin's ex-girlfriend worked at the Macy's,
Francis said. The possible connection was under investigation.
Cetin has a criminal record that includes three domestic violence
charges in which his stepfather was the victim, the Seattle Times
reported, citing court records.
He also was arrested for drunken driving and barred by a judge in
December from possessing a firearm, the newspaper reported without
providing details. Reuters was unable to confirm the reports.
Police did not identify the victims but local media said they ranged
in age from mid-teens to mid-90s, and included a mother and her
daughter. The Skagit County Coroner's Office said it planned to
release information about shooting victims on Monday.
(Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco and Laila Kearney in
New York; Editing by Louise Heavens and Bill Trott)
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2016/Sep/26/images/ads/current/LPL_small%201.gif) |