A suspect in a deadly shooting outside a Washington State event hall, where about 200 people had been gathered, was arrested on murder charges, authorities said.
Andres Carrasco-Sanchez, of Kelso, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of two people in the parking lot of AWPPW Hall in Longview on Saturday, April 11, according to the Longview Police Department.
Carrasco-Sanchez, 49, was arrested that evening following a police chase, the department said in a Sunday, April 12, news release.
Officers called to the shooting at the event hall on April 11 found two people who had been fatally shot outside the venue, according to authorities. Their identities have not been released by law enforcement.
The officers then spotted a “suspect vehicle leaving the scene and initiated a pursuit,” police said, and added that the “pursuit traveled into West Longview before circling back through town.”
During the police chase, Carrasco-Sanchez tossed a semiautomatic handgun out of the car window, according to police. The weapon was ultimately recovered.
At some point, Carrasco-Sanchez drove back to the parking lot of AWPPW Hall, where he got out of the car and ran off, police said.
“He was apprehended after a short foot chase,” police said in the news release.
It was not immediately clear whether Carrasco-Sanchez had an attorney who could comment on his behalf as of Monday, April 13.
A potential motive for the shooting was not specified by law enforcement.
The shooting unfolded during a quinceañera, according to individuals who were involved in cleanup efforts at the event hall the next morning, on Sunday, April 11, KGW-TV reported.
A woman who was bringing decorations to the event hall on April 11 also told KPTV that the shooting occurred at the time of a quinceañera. She was not named by the TV station.
A local Longview resident, Robert Philllips, witnessed a large number of police officers responding to the shooting, the TV station reported.
“It’s like every cop in town showed up right there,” Phillips told KPTV.
In addition to Longview police, officers and deputies with the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office, Kelso police officers and the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife were involved in the shooting response.
The Longview Police Department said in its news release that the agency does not expect to release additional information about the shooting.
Longview is located near the border of Oregon. It is about a 50-mile drive northwest from Portland.
