3 gunned down at packed Seattle food festival ID’d — as tot, 2, remains hospitalized

A father of three and a mother waiting in line for cotton candy were identified as two of the three people killed in a shooting at a popular Seattle food festival on Sunday night. 

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Junior Cee Niko Semo, 19; Carlos Israel Sanchez Villalba, 44; and Ashley Whitehead, 56, were gunned down in a hail of bullets at the packed Bite of Seattle event around 6 p.m., the King County Medical Examiner’s Office said on Monday, according to KOMO.

The youngest victim of the shooting, a 2-year-old boy, remains hospitalized.

Both Sanchez Villalba and Whitehead were innocent victims caught in the crossfire, while Semo was involved in the shooting, Mayor Katie Wilson confirmed on Monday afternoon.

Semo sustained multiple gunshot wounds in the chaos and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Villalba died of a gunshot wound to his torso at the scene, and Whitehead died at the hospital from a gunshot wound to her pelvis, the outlet reported.

Whitehead was waiting in line for cotton candy while enjoying the festival with her daughter, Zoie, and her future son-in-law, Ben, when the gunfire broke out, according to a GoFundMe for her funeral services and family. 

“She was shot and, despite surviving long enough to exchange heartfelt ‘I love yous’ with her eldest daughter, passed away during surgery at Harborview,” the fundraiser’s statement said. 

Whitehead was a “lover of life, art, and family,” and had recently moved from Alabama to the West Coast to be closer to Zoie, who tragically lost her partner of seven years to heart failure in 2018. The mother is also survived by her youngest daughter, Celeste. 

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Villalba was described in a GoFundMe as a “devoted husband, loving father of three, and a loyal friend who would do anything for anyone.”

“His kindness and generosity touched countless lives, and everyone who knew him remembers his gentle spirit and willingness to help others,” said the fundraiser meant to support his children who are now without their primary provider. 

Four other people were injured, including a 2-year-old boy who remains hospitalized. Two men in their twenties as well as a 39-year-old woman were discharged from the hospital after receiving treatment, authorities said.

A 15-year-old has been arrested in connection with the senseless shooting, while cops said the whereabouts of a second suspect are still “unknown.”

“We believe this teenager opened fire in the crowd, but details are still under investigation,” Wilson said at a press conference. 

The mayor said the unidentified teen is being investigated for firearms violations and first-degree assault.

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