Police investigating machete attack in Seattle’s Central District
Feb 5, 2026, 5:32 PM
SPD officers respond to the scene of the machete attack in Seattle. (Photo courtesy of SPD)
(Photo courtesy of SPD)
The Seattle Police Department (SPD) is investigating a machete attack that severed a man’s fingers Thursday afternoon in the city’s Central District neighborhood.
Officers were called just after 12 p.m. to a report of a person with “amputated fingers” inside a recreational vehicle parked in the 200 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Way S. Police said responding officers determined the victim had been attacked with a machete and pepper-sprayed inside the RV.
The injured man escaped the vehicle and ran to a nearby fire station, where officers found him. Seattle Fire Department (SFD) medics treated the victim at the scene before transporting him to Harborview Medical Center for further care.
A police K9 unit tracked the suspect from the RV to the area near Martin Luther King Jr. Way S. and E. Yesler Way, but the scent trail ended. Investigators believe the suspect fled the area, possibly in a vehicle, before officers arrived.
Police later applied for a search warrant for the RV to collect evidence related to the assault.
The circumstances surrounding the attack remain under investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact the SPD’s Violent Crimes Tip Line at (206) 233‑5000.
Read more of Aaron Granillo’s stories here.
Follow @https://twitter.com/aaronkirofm
