DOUBLE HOMICIDE ON EYE STREET
Displaced houseguests huddle under blankets outside the house at 2457 Eye Street, with APD Community Service Office David Greaney manning the perimeter. KLH | Eye
Kevin L. Hoover
Eye Editor
EYE STREET – Two people, a male and a female, were killed in a house on Eye Street early this morning.
People staying at the house said that a suspect, another houseguest, shot the two with a revolver. Police have no one in custody, but are pursuing a “person of interest,” according to APD Lt. Ryan Peterson. [UPDATE: A suspect has been arrested.]
Victims have not been identified. The houseguests said the female was an 18-year-old high school student.
Peterson said the female was pronounced dead at the scene. The male died shortly thereafter at Mad River Community Hospital. names have not yet been released.
Arcata Police have the house cordoned off and are processing the scene. Another team is pursuing leads and tracking down witnesses.
What the houseguests say
This morning, nearly a dozen individuals milled about outside, some lying and sitting about in the street eating donuts and tending to pets. Several said that they had been staying at the house. “People crash here,” said one of the guests. Some said they had been staying at the house for two days.
About 2 a.m., the houseguests said, three to five shots rang out and the guests discovered the victims in the living room. They applied pressure to the victims’ bleeding wounds while 911 was called.
Police arrived, the guests were told to leave the home, and were interviewed by officers outside. They left all their possessions inside.
The suspect was described by the houseguests as an African-American man in his twenties who went by the name of “C Nasty.” He was dressed in gray sweat pants, with a “wife beater” sleeveless t-shirt and an Oakland Raiders cap.
He has a tattoo of a tree on his upper arm, and what was described as an “all-seeing eye.” All in all, said witnesses, the man had a “thuggish look.”
The houseguests characterized the man as unpleasant and sexually aggressive towards the women staying at the house. “He was drunk all the time,” said one. “He hit on every girl here.”
“He tried to feel up on me,” said a young woman sitting in the street holding a cat. “He was into terrible music.” The guests described the music as abrasive, with the term “thirsty-ass hoes” repeatedly used.
“He was really fucked up,” said a man. “He talked about Garberville, about the Bloods accepting him. Gang and drug talk.” The suspect was armed with some sort of baton, in addition to the firearm.
“We think he was trying to get with the girl,” said a man who had been in the house when the homicides occurred. The consensus scenario was that the suspect had solicited sex from the female, and that the male victim had tried to defend her.
The male victim apparently went by the name “Sunshine.” The female victim’s name is not yet disclosed.
The female victim just turned 18 years old, the guests said. they described her a “sweet and nice,” and still in high school. “She was a bubbly young lady, full of life,” one guest said.
Investigation underway
Police Chief Tom Chapman is out of town, and Peterson is acting chief in his absence.
Peterson said even more people were staying at the house, and that they are being tracked down.
Evidence technicians are currently processing the house.
Updates when available…
