Originally published Wednesday, May 30, 2012 at 12:20 PM
Suspect's family: 'We could see this coming'
A man suspected of shooting five people at a University District cafe — and a woman later on First Hill — shot himself as police closed in.
By Christine Clarridge, Jennifer Sullivan and Jim Brunner
Seattle Times staff reporters
Seattle police said they believe the same man was responsible for two deadly shootings Wednesday in Seattle.
The man shot himself in the head on a West Seattle sidewalk as police closed in.
He is believed by police to have killed three people and wounded two others at Cafe Racer Espresso in the University District earlier Wednesday. A half-hour later, a woman was shot to death near Town Hall in the First Hill neighborhood by a man who fled the scene in a black SUV.
The man was identified by a law enforcement sources as Ian Lee Stawicki, 40, of Seattle.
His brother Andrew Stawicki, 29, of Ellensburg, said that when he saw a photo on the news of the alleged gunman inside Cafe Racer he recognized it as his brother.
Stawicki said his brother, Ian, was mentally ill.
"It's no surprise to me this happened. We could see this coming. Nothing good is going to come with that much anger inside of you," Andrew Stawicki said.
Ian Stawicki was taken to Harborview Medical Center by ambulance, his condition not immediately known. Many media, including The Seattle Times, initially reported erroneously he had died.
According to records, Ian Stawicki formerly lived in the 4700 block of Roosevelt Way Northeast. A police SWAT team surrounded the house earlier Wednesday, according to current residents.
Police ordered the residents out of the home and handcuffed them. When they learned Stawicki no longer lived there, they released them.
Assistant Seattle Police Chief Jim Pugel said "we now feel confident in connecting the two" shootings. Earlier, police had said they were not sure if the same man was responsible.
The first shooting happened around 11 a.m. at Cafe Racer Espresso in the 5800 block of Roosevelt Way Northeast, near the intersection with Northeast Ravenna Boulevard.
Two men were confirmed dead at the scene. Two other men and a woman were taken to Harborview Medical Center with life-threatening injuries. The woman later died, according to a hospital spokeswoman.
In the shooting near Town Hall, at Eighth Avenue and Seneca Street, witnesses saw the victim and a man arguing in the parking lot. The man shot the woman around 11:30 a.m. and fled in a black Mercedes-Benz SUV.
The SUV was found abandoned in the 4100 block of Delridge Way Southwest, with a black handgun in the front seat.
Police patrol units, detectives, SWAT teams and dogs began scouring the West Seattle area searching for the suspect.
At about 4 p.m., a police officer spotted the suspect on 37th Avenue Southwest near Southwest Raymond Street — about a mile and a half away from where the SUV was abandoned, according to Deputy Police Chief Nick Metz.
The officer called for backup, and as patrol cars closed in, the man put a gun to his head and fired one round, Metz said.
The suspect fell to the ground, and officers provided first aid before and ambulance arrived and took him to Harborview Medical Center, Metz said.
Of the two surviving victims of the Cafe Racer shooting, one is in surgery in critical condition and the other is in critical condition in the intensive care unit, said hospital spokeswoman Susan Gregg.
One of the men who survived was Leonard Meuse, the chef at the cafe. His father, Raymond Meuse, said Wednesday afternoon his son had been shot twice in the jaw and armpit, but that he was out of surgery and expected to survive.
"It's sounding pretty good," he said about his son's medical condition.
Metz told reporters near the scene he did not know the motive for the shootings.
Metz said the gunman walked into the cafe and began shooting people at about 11 a.m. He was described as a white man, 30-40 years old, 6-feet-1, with a thin build, light brown curly hair, a goatee or beard.
Police released photos from surveillance video from inside the cafe that showed the alleged gunman just before and after the shooting.
Schools near the shooting scene, including Roosevelt High, Eckstein Middle and Green Lake Elementary, were taking precautions, operating with doors locked, according to a school-district spokeswoman.
At Eckstein, shades were shut and students assigned to portable classrooms had been moved into the auditorium of the main building.
University of Washington spokesman Norm Arkans said the university put out a description of the suspect using social media and email, but there was no lockdown in effect on the campus, which is 12 blocks south of the cafe shooting.
A man who gave his name as Justin said he used to work at Cafe Racer. He said a friend was wounded in the shooting.
"It's one of the few places I thought things like this couldn't happen," he said. "They play folk music. Everybody's nice."
But Michael Henderson, who lives a block away, said he's seen what appeared to be fights or other disputes at the cafe, which also serves beer.
Wednesday's shootings are come on the heels of several over the past few days in Seattle that jangled nerves and prompted police to step up patrols in some areas of the city.
Last week, Justin Ferrari, a 43-year-old father of two, was killed by gunfire when one man opened fire on another man in the Central District. Police said Ferrari was a random victim.
In South Seattle, police said, more than 60 bullets were fired at four houses, beginning about 1 a.m. Saturday. The police gang unit is investigating at least two of the shootings.
Suspect's family: 'We could see this coming'
A man suspected of shooting five people at a University District cafe — and a woman later on First Hill — shot himself as police closed in.
By Christine Clarridge, Jennifer Sullivan and Jim Brunner
Seattle Times staff reporters
Seattle police said they believe the same man was responsible for two deadly shootings Wednesday in Seattle.
The man shot himself in the head on a West Seattle sidewalk as police closed in.
He is believed by police to have killed three people and wounded two others at Cafe Racer Espresso in the University District earlier Wednesday. A half-hour later, a woman was shot to death near Town Hall in the First Hill neighborhood by a man who fled the scene in a black SUV.
The man was identified by a law enforcement sources as Ian Lee Stawicki, 40, of Seattle.
His brother Andrew Stawicki, 29, of Ellensburg, said that when he saw a photo on the news of the alleged gunman inside Cafe Racer he recognized it as his brother.
Stawicki said his brother, Ian, was mentally ill.
"It's no surprise to me this happened. We could see this coming. Nothing good is going to come with that much anger inside of you," Andrew Stawicki said.
Ian Stawicki was taken to Harborview Medical Center by ambulance, his condition not immediately known. Many media, including The Seattle Times, initially reported erroneously he had died.
According to records, Ian Stawicki formerly lived in the 4700 block of Roosevelt Way Northeast. A police SWAT team surrounded the house earlier Wednesday, according to current residents.
Police ordered the residents out of the home and handcuffed them. When they learned Stawicki no longer lived there, they released them.
Assistant Seattle Police Chief Jim Pugel said "we now feel confident in connecting the two" shootings. Earlier, police had said they were not sure if the same man was responsible.
The first shooting happened around 11 a.m. at Cafe Racer Espresso in the 5800 block of Roosevelt Way Northeast, near the intersection with Northeast Ravenna Boulevard.
Two men were confirmed dead at the scene. Two other men and a woman were taken to Harborview Medical Center with life-threatening injuries. The woman later died, according to a hospital spokeswoman.
In the shooting near Town Hall, at Eighth Avenue and Seneca Street, witnesses saw the victim and a man arguing in the parking lot. The man shot the woman around 11:30 a.m. and fled in a black Mercedes-Benz SUV.
The SUV was found abandoned in the 4100 block of Delridge Way Southwest, with a black handgun in the front seat.
Police patrol units, detectives, SWAT teams and dogs began scouring the West Seattle area searching for the suspect.
At about 4 p.m., a police officer spotted the suspect on 37th Avenue Southwest near Southwest Raymond Street — about a mile and a half away from where the SUV was abandoned, according to Deputy Police Chief Nick Metz.
The officer called for backup, and as patrol cars closed in, the man put a gun to his head and fired one round, Metz said.
The suspect fell to the ground, and officers provided first aid before and ambulance arrived and took him to Harborview Medical Center, Metz said.
Of the two surviving victims of the Cafe Racer shooting, one is in surgery in critical condition and the other is in critical condition in the intensive care unit, said hospital spokeswoman Susan Gregg.
One of the men who survived was Leonard Meuse, the chef at the cafe. His father, Raymond Meuse, said Wednesday afternoon his son had been shot twice in the jaw and armpit, but that he was out of surgery and expected to survive.
"It's sounding pretty good," he said about his son's medical condition.
Metz told reporters near the scene he did not know the motive for the shootings.
Metz said the gunman walked into the cafe and began shooting people at about 11 a.m. He was described as a white man, 30-40 years old, 6-feet-1, with a thin build, light brown curly hair, a goatee or beard.
Police released photos from surveillance video from inside the cafe that showed the alleged gunman just before and after the shooting.
Schools near the shooting scene, including Roosevelt High, Eckstein Middle and Green Lake Elementary, were taking precautions, operating with doors locked, according to a school-district spokeswoman.
At Eckstein, shades were shut and students assigned to portable classrooms had been moved into the auditorium of the main building.
University of Washington spokesman Norm Arkans said the university put out a description of the suspect using social media and email, but there was no lockdown in effect on the campus, which is 12 blocks south of the cafe shooting.
A man who gave his name as Justin said he used to work at Cafe Racer. He said a friend was wounded in the shooting.
"It's one of the few places I thought things like this couldn't happen," he said. "They play folk music. Everybody's nice."
But Michael Henderson, who lives a block away, said he's seen what appeared to be fights or other disputes at the cafe, which also serves beer.
Wednesday's shootings are come on the heels of several over the past few days in Seattle that jangled nerves and prompted police to step up patrols in some areas of the city.
Last week, Justin Ferrari, a 43-year-old father of two, was killed by gunfire when one man opened fire on another man in the Central District. Police said Ferrari was a random victim.
In South Seattle, police said, more than 60 bullets were fired at four houses, beginning about 1 a.m. Saturday. The police gang unit is investigating at least two of the shootings.
