Tacoma, Wash. – A teenager was shot to death in a high-school hallway Wednesday as classes were about to resume after winter break. Police arrested a fellow student a few blocks away, authorities said.
Police were trying to determine what prompted the shooting but do not believe it was gang- related or racially motivated.
Witnesses said the gunman fired three shots at point-blank range, splattering blood on lockers at Foss High School and setting off panic. He did not appear to be aiming at anyone other than the victim.
The victim “got shot – bang – and he just fell,” said sophomore Malcolm Clark. “He just froze, and he fell backwards into the lockers.”
The teen suspect was caught without incident about two hours later in a suburban area. Douglas Chanthabouly, 18, was booked for investigation of first-degree murder. Police said he had no criminal record.
The suspected shooter and victim were acquainted, but detectives did not know a motive.
An armed school officer was on the scene within seconds and radioed police for help as teachers herded students into classrooms and the gym, Detective Chris Taylor said. Three teams of about six officers, each armed with rifles, swept the school to ensure the gunman had left.
Principal Don Herbert was only 20 feet away when the shooting happened. “The only thing I could have done was taken the shot instead, but it happened very fast,” he said.
The medical examiner’s office identified the victim as Samnang Kok, 17.
Kok’s sister, Lisa, told television station KING in Seattle that he was the father of a little boy. The 18-month-old “would always ask for his dad,” she said. “I don’t know what to tell him when he says that.”
The school was locked down after the shooting.
