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Fred Meyer shooting: Worker critical and one dead in Washington
New details continue to emerge about the man suspected of carrying out a deadly rampage at a Fred Meyer supermarket in Washington state.
Aaron Christopher Kelly, 39, was arrested early Tuesday following an hours-long manhunt after he allegedly shot two people, one fatally, at the store in Richland on Monday morning.
He is currently being held at the Benton County Jail on charges of first-degree murder and attempted murder. His bond was held at $1m at a court hearing Tuesday afternoon where his arraignment was postponed until 23 February.
Prior to the hearing, prosecutors revealed Fred Meyer employees recognised Mr Kelly from prior shoplifting incidents, including one just last week.
Meanwhile tributes have poured in for Justin Krumbah, the 38-year-old Instacart shopper killed in the shooting. The other victim, Mark Hill, is said to be in stable condition.
An investigation remains ongoing as the gunman’s motive has yet to be determined.
Police identified Mr Kelly as the suspect in Monday’s shooting in part from a tip by his former roommate and landlord, Bryant Scott.
Mr Scott said he met Mr Kelly went he rented his a room in his home out to him, but their relationship began to fall apart when Mr Kelly allegedly refused to move out.
“Being around Aaron was like having a living ghost,” Mr Scott said, according to Northwest News. “You know it’s there, you don’t want it to be and there’s nothing you can do about it. When it comes around, you feel uncomfortable. You want it to go away and it won’t. And it just comes and goes and you’re just always on edge.”
Mr Scott filed a petition for a protection order against Mr Kelly for harassment in 2020, but it was struck down by a judge. Eventually, he said he was forced to sell the home to get away from Mr Kelly.
A man who owns an auto shop near the Fred Meyer store in Richland has described how people feeling gunfire took shelter in his business.
“I’d never seen terror in anybody’s eyes like I saw today,” Robert Cronkhite told NewsNation.
Watch his interview below:
Mr Kelly’s former landlord and roommate store has claimed that he begged authorities to take away his tenant’s firearm after he tried to poison his dogs.
Bryant Scott wrote in a now-deleted Facebook post, seen by DailyMail.com, that Aaron Christopher Kelly refused to leave the property he rented to him, was “repeatedly attempting to murder my dogs” and waged a campaign of harassment against him and his friends during the pandemic.
Mr Scott said he filed for a restraining order against the 39-year-old and asked a judge to confiscate his weapon – but that both requests were denied.
Court records, obtained by The Independent, show that Mr Scott filed a complaint for unlawful harassment against Mr Kelly in Franklin Franklin County Superior Court in October 2020.
The Independent’s Rachel Sharp reports:
Court records show Bryant Scott filed a complaint for unlawful harassment against Aaron Christopher Kelly in October 2020 – 16 months before he allegedly opened fire inside a grocery store on Monday
Gunfire erupted at the Fred Meyer supermarket in Richland, Washington, just after 11am local time on Monday.
Police arrived at the scene within a minute, but by that time suspected shooter Aaron Kelly had already fled.
One victim, Justin Krumbah, died at the scene while another, Mark Hill, was rushed to a hospital in critical condition.
An 11-hour manhunt ensued before Mr Kelly was taken into custody about 150 miles away. He is now being held on $1m bail on charges of first-degree murder and attempted murder.
The Independent’s Gino Spocchia recaps everything we know so far:
Witnesses recalled hearing around half a dozen shots before suspect fled
Police have yet to recover the firearm suspect Aaron Kelly allegedly used in the shooting, officials said Tuesday.
Casings found at the crime scene appeared to have come from a 9mm handgun, matching the description that Mr Kelly’s roommate said he owned.
However, that gun apparently was not on Mr Kelly’s person when he was arrested hours after the shooting. Officials said they were requesting a search warrant for the suspect’s car.
Officials with the Richland Police Department offered an update on the shooting investigation at a briefing on Tuesday.
Watch the full remarks below:
A GoFundMe campaign raising money for slain Instacart shopper Justin Krumbah’s family surpassed $25,000 by Wednesday as customers paid tribute to the man remembered as a “breath of fresh air”.
Mr Krumbah was filling orders at the Richland Fred Meyer store on Monday morning when he was confronted by suspected gunman Aaron Kelly, prosecutors said.
The men engaged in a 10 to 15-second argument before Mr Kelly allegedly opened fire, continuing to shoot Mr Krumbah after he fell to the ground.
The Independent’s Rachel Sharp explains what we know about the victim:
Justin Krumbah, 38, spoke of his passion for his job on social media just weeks before he was shot dead in the Washington store
During Tuesday’s press conference, Interim Richland Police Chief Brigit Clary was asked how Mr Kelly managed to flee the store as officers arrived on the scene.
It came after she said it only took officers one minute to respond to the first reports of gunfire, which lasted around the same amount of time.
A reporter appeared to suggest that the officers mishandled the situation by letting Mr Kelly get away.
However, Ms Clary insisted that the officers acted appropriately in assessing the situation and said they did not encounter Mr Kelly on their way in.
Specifics about how he got away – and ended up 150 miles north before his arrest – remain unclear.
Mark Hill, the Fred Meyer employee wounded in Monday’s shooting, remained hospitalised as of Wednesday morning but is seeing some improvement, according to a GoFundMe campaign.
The organiser of the campaign, Destiny Underwood, wrote in an update on Mr Hill’s condition: “Mark is stable, he was able to wiggle his toes, squeeze his mom’s hand, and look at the doctor last night.
“He is still not out of the woods, the family said.”
Mr Hill was standing by the customer service desk in the Richland supermarket when he was shot moments after the first victim, Justin Krumbah, who was killed.
He was rushed to the hospital in critical condition.
The GoFundMe has raised nearly $15,000 to date.
Fred Meyer employees recognised Mr Kelly in Monday’s shooting in Richland because he had a history of shoplifting, prosecutors said.
An employee at a neighboring location in Kennewick contacted police and said a man she believed to be Mr Kelly had come into her store days earlier on 3 February.
A staff member took a photo of him on that occasion after he was suspected of shoplifting. In the photo he appeared to be wearing the same clothes as the Richland suspect.
Prosecutors said Mr Kelly was known to employees for prior shoplifting incidents, however no additional details were given.
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Suspect Aaron Christopher Kelly appears in court on 8 February to face charges for the shooting at a Fred Meyer store in Richland, Washington
KREM
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