Police arrest a man after 9 people are stabbed over 2 days in Seattle

SEATTLE (AP) — A man has been arrested in connection with a spate of random stabbings over two days in Seattle, in which nine people were injured -- five of them on Friday afternoon, police said.

“This incident was apparently one individual over a 38-hour period of time committing random assaults,” Deputy Chief Eric Barden said at the scene Friday.

The stabbings on Friday afternoon took place in a roughly four-block area in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District.

Witnesses reported a description of the suspect and officers found him nearby and took him into custody, police said. A weapon was found near the person who was arrested, and a knife was lodged in one of the victims, police said.

Four of the victims were taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle and one victim was treated at the scene and released. A Harborview spokesperson confirmed four victims were at the hospital and said all were in critical condition. As of Friday evening, two of them remained in critical condition, one had been upgraded to serious condition and the other to satisfactory condition, the spokesperson said.

Barden said police suspect that the person arrested in connection with Friday's stabbings is the same person involved with at least four other stabbings that happened starting early Thursday. He cited similar suspect descriptions and the randomness of the attacks, but added that the investigation is ongoing.

The Thursday stabbings in Chinatown started when a 52-year-old woman was found with multiple stab wounds, police said. On Thursday afternoon, a 32-year-old man was found after being stabbed multiple times and at about 8 p.m. a 37-year-old man was stabbed multiple times in the back, police said.

Then early on Friday, police responding to an assault call found a 53-year-old man bleeding heavily from a neck injury. Police followed a blood trail to a nearby doorway and unsuccessfully used that as a starting point for police dogs to try and track a suspect.

“It is my understanding that everyone is alive,” Barden said of the victims on Friday afternoon.

Police said a 10th stabbing on Thursday night involved a cellphone robbery in which someone forcibly opened a vehicle door and tried to stab a 60-year-old man in the chest. The victim blocked the assault and was cut on his hand, police said. It was not clear that it was connected to the random attacks, police said.

People wait for a bus near the area where multiple people were stabbed earlier Friday, Nov. 8, 2024, in the Chinatown-International District in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Police officers gather security camera footage from nearby businesses after multiple people were stabbed earlier in the area Friday, Nov. 8, 2024, in the Chinatown-International District in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Drivers move through the area where multiple people were stabbed earlier Friday, Nov. 8, 2024, in the Chinatown-International District in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Police officers stand near the scene as they gather security camera footage after multiple people were stabbed in the area Friday, Nov. 8, 2024, in the Chinatown-International District in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Police officers take a statement from a nearby business owner after multiple people were stabbed Friday, Nov. 8, 2024, in the Chinatown-International District in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Police officers stand near the scene as they gather security camera footage after multiple people were stabbed Friday, Nov. 8, 2024, in the Chinatown-International District in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Sales rose this year during the holiday shopping season even as Americans wrestled with elevated prices for many groceries and other necessities, according to new data.

Holiday sales from the beginning of November through Christmas Eve climbed 3.8%, outpacing the 3.1% increase from a year earlier, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse, which tracks all kinds of payments including cash and debit cards. The last five days of the season accounted for 10% of the spending.

This year, retailers were even more under the gun to get shoppers in to buy early and in bulk since there were five fewer days between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Michelle Meyer, chief economist at Mastercard Economics Institute, said the holiday shopping season “revealed a consumer who is willing and able to spend but driven by a search for value” as seen by concentrated online spending during the biggest promotional periods.

Sales growth was higher than the 3.2% increase Mastercard SpendingPulse had projected this fall. The data released Thursday excludes the automotive industry and is not adjusted for inflation.

Clothing sales rose 3.6%, with most of the growth being fueled by online shopping. Spending on restaurants, and sales of electronics and jewelry also grew. Online sales jumped 6.7% from a year ago and in-person spending rose 2.9%.

Consumer spending accounts for nearly 70% of U.S. economic activity and economists carefully monitor how Americans use their money, particularly during the holidays, to gauge how they’re feeling financially.

The most recent government data on consumer spending, released on Dec. 17, showed shoppers stepped up activity at retail stores last month. But auto dealer sales drove most of those gains as huge storms created a need for new cars in parts of the southeast slammed by Hurricane Helene in October. Big discounts at many retail chains also attracted shoppers.

But the report also hinted at some consumer caution as sales at grocery stores, clothing shops, and restaurants fell. Outside of car dealers and online retailers, sales gains were modest.

Retailers felt more pressure this year due to the shorter holiday shopping period, and also from a presidential election that captured the attention of many consumers. Sales of general merchandise slid 9% in the two weeks ended Nov. 9, according to Circana, a market research group. Sales have been rebounding but stores will have to make up for those losses.

A broader picture of how Americans are spending their money arrives next month when the National Retail Federation, the nation’s largest retail trade group, releases its combined two-month statistics based on November-December sales figures from the Commerce Department.

The group expects that shoppers will have made $979.5 billion to $989 billion worth of purchases in November and December, which would represent a 2.5%-3.5% increase over the same two-month period a year ago. That would be a slower rate than the 3.9% increase from holiday 2023 over holiday 2022 season.

Overall, retailers had a decent start to the unofficial kickoff to the holiday shopping period despite lots of discounts that started as early as October.

FILE - A shopper looks at handbags at Macy's department store on Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Anne D'Innocenzio, File)