'Chaos, madness': 1 dead in Bellevue nightclub shooting, Seahawks players present

BY Brandi Kruse  on December 24, 2012 @ 7:08 am (Updated: 2:22 am - 12/25/12 )

Police are investigating a shooting inside a club in Bellevue that left one person dead and another injured early Monday morning.

A felony arrest warrant was issued late Monday for the suspected shooter, 19-year-old Ja'mari Alexander-Alan Jones, who could be driving a white Nissan Maxima, WA license plate #AHZ1672.

Police consider him armed and dangerous.

Jones was one of three teens who police say was responsible for the beating death of the "Tuba Man," a beloved Seattle street musician. Ed McMichael, known for playing his tuba outside Seattle sporting events, was beaten and robbed at a bus stop near Seattle Center in October 2008. He died as a result of his injuries.

At approximately 1:10 a.m. Monday, police officers responded to reports of shots fired inside Munchbar, which is located at 505 Bellevue Way.

More than 600 people were at the club to celebrate the Seattle Seahawks' win over the San Francisco 49ers. No Seahawks players were involved in the incident, according to a tweet sent by defensive end Greg Scruggs just after 2 a.m. He said he and his teammates were not injured.

"From what we know, our guys were in a separate area and nobody was involved at all," Seahawks Head Coach Pete Carroll said at a press conference Monday, calling it a "very grave incident."

According to a spokesperson with the Bellevue Police Department, the lone victim is a 30-year-old man from Seattle who was pronounced dead at the scene. Another man was rushed to Overlake Medical Center in stable condition. He is being treated for a gunshot wound to the hand, a hospital spokesperson said.

"From what I understand, there were several incidents and altercations that were going on inside the Munchbar that may have led to the shooting," said Officer Carla Iafrate.

Kimberly Bowley, 24, of Renton, went to Munchbar with a group of friends. She said a fight broke out and a man was pushed on top of her.

"I pushed him off, and then my friend said ‘We need to go," she told KIRO Radio.

Seconds later, she said she heard five gunshots.

"I saw the gun shots. I saw it all because I was just right there," she said. "At first everybody just froze, then everybody dropped down to the ground. After we didn't hear any more bullets people just started getting up, screaming and crying and just booking it towards the door."

Jack Ballard, 31, of Kirkland, said he went to Munchbar after the Seahawks game to celebrate.

He was on the dance floor when shots were fired.

"They turned the music off and I thought there was just a fight," he said. "I'm calm, and then chaos ensues. People started running toward the exit and people were getting knocked over and trampled. It was chaos, madness."

As he exited, Ballard said he saw a man covered in blood.

"I saw the guy laying there and people were surrounding him," he said. "There was blood splatter all over the floor."

Aubrey O'Day, a reality TV star and former member of the girl band Danity Kane, tweeted that she was at Munchbar during the shooting.

"Seriously ppl just got shot n front of me. We hit the ground, never been in a situation like this. For real. Seattle, what's going on?!" she wrote. "Every1 was screaming on the floor, we had to crawl out the kitchen."

Iafrate said police respond to altercations at Munchbar every weekend and officers frequently patrol the area.

The Bellevue Police Department is asking anyone with information about the shooting to contact their tip line at 425-452-2564 or email pdtipline@bellevuewa.gov. If you have information on the whereabouts of Jones, you are asked to call 911 immediately. The public should not attempt to contact him.

Brandi Kruse, KIRO Radio Reporter
Brandi Kruse is a reporter for KIRO Radio who is as spontaneous and adventurous in her free time as she is on the job. Brandi arrived at KIRO Radio in March 2011 and has already collected three regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her reporting.
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Comments (48)


  • Add A Comment

  • dadling wrote...
    Let a killer go so he can kill again !!
    December 25, 2012 9:17 am
    It is time to start holding the judicial system accountable...since this young man has killed once and now killed again, I believe it's time to hold the judge and prosecuter's who freed him, responsible. Put them behind bars for their brazen act of liberal justice...time to hold them accountable for the bodies and lives that now litter the area.....
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Cash wrote...
    Don't forget
    December 25, 2012 9:49 am
    The defense lawyers who go as far out of their way to supress evidence that should be used in court... Judges elections are bankrolled by defense lawyers and they return the pay back by making it impossible to prosecute and the lawyers can charge more $$$ for their services because they are more and more successful and the circle continues... This entire system in Washington is so screwed up and somehow the smart people have decided that the protections in the constitution are blanket immunity for the worst people on the planet... Those protections are to give you a fair trial and not complete cover to dismiss illegal activity... For those who allowed this to happen shame on you and I hope you can't sleep at night anymore...
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Lonestar wrote...
    Catch & release
    December 25, 2012 11:54 am
    Doesn't work well with gangbangers. Merry Christmas!
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • jstumbo wrote...
    This guy should be put down...
    December 25, 2012 12:00 pm
    This guy is never going to be a contributing member of society. He should either be shot on the streets, or caught, taken out of the court room, and have a shot to the back of the head. Then just dump his body in a ditch somewhere and let the animals eat him. "Jones was one of three teens who police say was responsible for the beating death of the "Tuba Man," a beloved Seattle street musician." Police say? Shouldn't it read that he was one that was responsible for the beating death, not that "police say was"?
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • CH wrote...
    Dump his body in a ditch somewhere and let the animals eat him?
    December 25, 2012 12:05 pm
    must be a republican.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • jstumbo wrote...
    I guess you would like..
    December 25, 2012 7:45 pm
    to give him another 9 months in jail for the latest killing, after all, he is just as much a victim, and maybe he can be rehabilitated before he kills his third person? What does political affiliation have to do with this at all? If you must know, I voted for Obama at the federal level, voted for McKenna for governor, voted for gay marriage, and against legalization of pot. Does that make me a republican?
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • soo purletiv wrote...
    @ Listen up dorks..!
    December 25, 2012 12:50 pm
    Somebody got under someone's skin.... :-)
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • soo purletiv wrote...
    @ Cash
    December 25, 2012 12:54 pm
    As I remember it, it was more on the pathetic prosecutor who whined about not being able to prove that the kids did it, so he gave them a plea deal.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Cash wrote...
    @soo
    December 25, 2012 6:40 pm
    I agree that there was a failure on that part but I put a bulk of it on the juvenile court judge and the King County Juvenile Court system... They never allow evidence that should be admitted into trial on a regular basis. I think if the pre-trial hearings were ruled on properly there would have been a different outcome. Not just in this case but in the majority of both adult and juvenile cases in King County. It is all about restricting evidence and not allowing it. If the defendant did not commit the crime the evidence would not have been there to collect in the first place... Just frustrating when people die when easily could have been avoided if people did their jobs with honor and not for personal gain.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }