Suspect charged in Des Moines bus stop shooting
DES MOINES, Wash. - Prosecutors have charged a suspect in connection with a shooting at a Des Moines bus stop that left two people hurt.
Around 4:45 a.m. Monday, a man was shot after getting off a RapidRide A Line bus and another man was grazed by a bullet at a stop near Pacific Highway South and South Kent-Des Moines Road. The suspect fled the scene.
At about 6 p.m. Monday, officers responded to 911 reports of a man walking around with a handgun near South 272nd Street and Pacific Highway South in Kent.
Investigators said witnesses reported seeing the man get onto a Metro bus that stopped South 240th Street and Pacific Hwy South, where he was contacted by officers.
Police recognized the man from surveillance from the bus stop shooting earlier in the day.
The suspect, later identified as 46-year-old Shawn Austin, was arrested and booked into the King County Jail.
On Thursday, Austin was charged with first-degree assault and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.
According to Des Moines police, Austin has a lengthy, violent criminal history, including nine felony charges.
"Though Mr. Austin has a significant criminal history, not all of those cases were referred to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for charges. The last case referred to us involving Mr. Austin was a 2020 case that led to a conviction for Theft in the Third Degree and Criminal Trespass in the First Degree," the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office said in a news release.
The person who was shot remains in the hospital and the person who was grazed by a bullet was treated at the scene and released.
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