Shootings leave one dead, two wounded

One person died and two others were injured in a pair of unrelated north Spokane shootings that kept police busy on New Year’s Eve and into Tuesday.

In the first attack, reported at 10 p.m. Monday, two people were shot, one fatally, outside the Neighborhood Grocery store at 3400 E. Euclid Ave.

Police responded quickly and were told that the gunman had fled, according to a news release.

Officers discovered a crashed car at Thor Street and Carlisle Avenue. A Spokane County Sheriff’s Department helicopter located the suspected shooter, identified as 33-year-old Shannon Lee Johnson, hiding under the Greene Street Bridge along the Spokane River, and police took him into custody, the release said.

He is facing charges of second-degree murder and first-degree assault.

The surviving victim of the store shooting was in critical condition at a local hospital, police said early Tuesday. The victims’ identities were not released.

Avtar Singh, a clerk at the store, said he was working behind the counter when a man came in and told the two victims to follow him outside.

Immediately after leaving the store, the shooter opened fire with 19 shots, he said. The clerk said he had not seen the men prior to Monday night.

In the second incident, which took place about 3:15 a.m. Tuesday, police were called to 4207 N. Jefferson St. after witnesses reported hearing shots fired. Police found an 18-year-old woman with at least two gunshot wounds to her torso. The shots came from outside the house, and it was unclear whether it was a drive-by shooting or if the suspect was on foot, police said in a news release.

Witnesses reported hearing seven to 12 shots fired.

The victim was in critical but stable condition Tuesday. Her identity had not been released, and police said they have neither a suspect nor a motive for the attack.