The 20-year-old suspect in the deadly Washington state mall shooting said nothing and appeared "zombie-like'' when he was arrested nearly 24 hours into an intense manhunt, police say.
Island County Sheriff's Lieutenant Mike Hawley said he spotted Arcan Cetin from a patrol car on Saturday evening in Oak Harbor, Washington, and immediately recognised him as the suspect who killed five people at the Cascade Mall in nearby Burlington.
Hawley said at a news conference they had received information that Cetin, of Oak Harbor, was in the area. Cetin, who immigrated to the US from Turkey, is a legal permanent resident who has been living in Oak Harbor, authorities said. He had been arrested once before in the county for assault, Hawley said.
"I literally hit my brakes, did a quick turn, I jumped out,'' Hawley said. "We both jumped out with our guns, and he just froze.''
Cetin was unarmed and was carrying a satchel with a computer in it.
"He was kind of zombie-like,'' Hawley said.
The suspect's arrest capped a frantic search following the slayings of five people the day before.
The first 911 call came in just before 7pm on a busy Friday at the Cascade Mall: A man with a rifle was shooting at people in the Macy's department store.
By the time police arrived moments later, the carnage at the Macy's makeup counter was complete. Four people were dead, and the shooter was gone, last seen walking toward Interstate 5. The fifth victim, a man, died in the early hours of Saturday as police finished sweeping the building.
Authorities said it now appears the rifle was brought into the mall from a suspect vehicle that was there, Mount Vernon police Lieutenant Chris Cammock said.
Cetin has not been charged, Cammock said. He will be booked into the Skagit County Jail and is expected to appear in Skagit County District Court on Monday.
As the small city absorbed the tragic news, critical questions remained, including the shooter's motive.
Initially the suspect was described as Hispanic, but Hawley said that was based on initial witness statements to the shooting at the mall.
