Federal Way Police are searching for witnesses who saw a 19-year-old Kent man killed during a drive-by shooting on Tuesday.
The shooting occurred at about 4:30 p.m. at the intersection of Southwest Dash Point Road and Pacific Highway South.
Arturo Marcial Alvarez died from multiple gunshot wounds, according to the King County Medical Examiner’s Office report on Wednesday.
Police spokeswoman Cathy Schrock said officers found the young man unconscious on the sidewalk. He had just exited a Metro bus and was alone. Eventually, he was pronounced deceased after efforts to revive him failed.
“What the preliminary investigation says is that a vehicle approached the area where the victim was and fired several shots,” Schrock said, noting the shooting appeared to be targeted. “We are not aware of the motive of the shooting.”
Marcial Alvarez’s last known address is in Kent, and he was described as Hispanic.
Schrock said Marcial Alvarez has a history of criminal contacts with Federal Way Police. He’s been convicted of a car prowl and has been arrested on drug-related crimes that were “probably pending prosecution,” she added.
The shooting occurred during rush hour traffic. As detectives investigated, traffic was reduced to one lane going southbound on Pacific Highway South.
“It was a very busy area, and we’re very lucky no one else was injured,” Schrock said. “… As far as I know, there were no other property damaged or other people injured, but when anybody is firing shots, the likelihood of innocent people being hit is always there.”
At this time, police have not released the make, model or color of the vehicle the drive-by shooters were driving but plan to do so as more information is available.
“Because it was so busy, there may be witnesses that saw something that maybe couldn’t stop because they were on their way to go somewhere important,” Schrock said, adding those witnesses should call 911 if they have information that could help solve the murder.
King County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Cindi West said in a press release on Wednesday that detectives are investigating whether the shooting of a 21-year-old man in Burien Tuesday is connected to the homicide in Federal Way and another shooting in Seattle, which all occurred within hours of each other.
This is the second murder in four days in Federal Way. In the early hours of Saturday, a 21-year-old man was shot and killed at a house party. Detectives do not believe the two murders are connected, however, as Saturday’s shooting suspect has since been arrested and charged.
Tuesday’s murder marks the third murder this year in Federal Way. Schrock said, from April 27 to May 10 in 2016, Federal Way experienced four murders within a concentrated time frame.
“But we also believe those four shootings were associated to one suspect, and we believe that suspect, although he’s not been charged yet, is in custody on other charges,” she said.
• Story contributed by Raechel Dawson of the Federal Way Mirror.
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