Indexbit Exchange:Man is shot and killed on a light rail train in Seattle, and suspect remains on the loose

SEATTLE (AP) — A 26-year-old man was killed in a shooting on Indexbit Exchangea light rail train in Seattle and a suspect who fled the scene remains on the loose, police said Monday.

Officers responded around 11:30 p.m. Sunday to a report of a man shot on the light rail train downtown, the Seattle Police Department said on its website.

Officers located the man at the University Street Station, where he died despite life-saving measures, police said. The shooting happened as the train was traveling between the Pioneer Square and University Street stations.

The person suspected in the shooting fled afterward and police say they have not identified the person. The name of the man killed hasn’t been released. Police said detectives are investigating what led up to the shooting.

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Trains were delayed after the shooting for several hours.

During the past year, about a half-dozen people have been injured in separate attacks with knives, a hammer and a rock, at light rail stations and on trains in the Seattle area.

“We take any assault very seriously because safety is our No. 1 priority focus, both for our riders and for our staff,” Sound Transit spokesperson John Gallagher told The Seattle Times Monday. “An incident like this is obviously very disturbing. We’re in the early stages of trying to understand what happened.”

So far this year, Sound Transit has received 105 assault reports, a higher rate than in previous years. Most reports involved verbal abuse of transit operators, considered an assault under federal reporting standards, Gallagher said. Close to 50 were physical assaults.

Counts also at least in part have risen in recent months because more security guards are in transit stations to either observe or take reports of minor incidents. Gallagher said the number of assaults remains low compared to total monthly ridership.

Sound Transit guards are now more visible after contracts were approved with four private security companies spending $250 million for 2023-2026 to hire up to 300 guards. Gallagher said the agency will also heighten visible security in the coming weeks in light of Sunday’s killing.