Police vehicle

Auburn man fatally shot inside Kent hookah lounge

Kent man injured in Sunday shooting; police trying to identify suspect

A 28-year-old Auburn man was fatally shot at about 6:30 a.m. Sunday, May 16 inside of the Luxe Hookah Lounge, 308 Washington Ave. S., in Kent.

A shooter also shot a 23-year-old Kent man in the hand, according to a Kent Police statement released Sunday night.

Detectives are working to determine the identity of the suspect. People on location at the time of the shooting and the injured man declined to provide information about what happened, according to police.

Officers responded to a 911 call about a shooting inside the lounge. The initial caller provided limited information and hung up on the 911 dispatcher without answering questions.

Police arrived at the lounge and found numerous people hanging out inside and outside the business. Officers conducted a sweep of the lounge and found the Auburn man with numerous gunshot wounds. Officers began live-saving efforts but the man didn’t survive.

Kent Police are asking that anyone with additional information to call 253-856-5808.

7th homicide of 2021

The shooting is the seventh homicide in the first five months of 2021 in Kent. The city had eight homicides in 2020, four in 2019 and seven in 2018.


Talk to us

Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.

To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website http://kowloonland.com.hk/?big=submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.

More in News

t
Kent Police bust four people for DUI on New Year’s Day

Officers arrest drivers between 1 and 5 a.m. during extra patrols following New Year’s Eve

Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent. FILE PHOTO
Three men charged in 2023 Kent murder of 48-year-old woman

Recent witness information identifying men help lead to charges in July 2023 shooting

FILE PHOTO, Bailey Jo Josie, Sound Publishing
Chase Wilcoxson, father to Matilda, 13, and Eloise,12, places a family photo at the roadside memorial dedicated to his daughters, Buster Brown, 12, and Andrea Hudson, 38, killed in a March 19 crash.
Year in review: Kent’s top stories of 2024

A month-by-month look at several of the headlining stories.

t
Kent Reporter’s most viewed web stories of 2024

Second fatal shooting of Kent-Meridian student in three days leads the list

t
Kent man pleads guilty to attempted luring of 6-year-old girl

Prosecutors initially filed second-degree attempted kidnapping charge in July case

t
Man charged with tagging Kent water tower faces nine other cases

Kyle A. McLaughlin pleads not guilty in two cases but Kent arraignment and other cases continued

t
Vandalism at Islamic Center in Kent causes concern about potential hate crime

Man throws objects through windows at Islamic Center of Federal Way mosque before speeding off in pickup

t
Kent receives $1.1M grant for Pacific Highway pedestrian crossing

Federal funds will pay for safety improvements near South 246th Street

t
Kent-based Toys for Joy program provides for 1,500 children

Puget Sound Fire collects more than 6,000 toys and stocking stuffers from community donations

t
Kent Police Detective Ford retires after 29 years with department

Helped solve 44-year-old cold case murder in 2024

Kent School District Board Director Awale Farah, left, and Superintendent Israel Vela at a high school graduation last summer. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent School District
Awale Farah resigns immediately from Kent School Board

Says because of ‘family commitments’ he cannot fulfill rest of his term that expires in November 2025

t
Kent’s Lower Russell Levee project receives John Spellman Award

City, King County Flood District and other partners recognized for historic preservation