Seattle police detectives are working “feverishly” to find additional people suspected of May Day violence, Capt. Chris Fowler said this afternoon.
Fowler, who was incident commander for Seattle police during Wednesday’s May Day events, said detectives and prosecutors are working together to build cases against the 17 suspects arrested last night. So far, six have been charged with misdemeanor offenses by the Seattle City Attorney’s Office, while an additional five, suspected of felonies, appeared this afternoon at the King County Jail courtroom.
Police are also using photographs and video from May Day to identify additional suspects, he said.
Fowler, speaking during a media availability at police headquarters, said officers used the minimum amount of force necessary to respond to the vandalism and assaults that erupted during the May Day march from Seattle Central Community College.
He said officers followed their training and he was proud of the police response. “They did the job that we expected them to do,” Fowler said of police.
Of the five suspects who appeared in the King County Jail court this afternoon, three were released on their own recognizance.
The two ordered held include a 21-year-old man accused of throwing a rock that struck a female police officer on the leg. He is being held in lieu of $60,000 bail for investigation of second-degree assault and felony riot.
The second suspect was allegedly spotted by police preparing to throw a rock and is being held in lieu of $20,000 bail for investigation of third-degree assault and felony riot. Both suspects have previous histories of violence, according to court records.
