A wild shootout on Main Avenue injured five people early Saturday morning, including one man whose life was saved by a tourniquet around his leg.
Two Des Moines men were charged this week with first-degree assault and two counts of second-degree assault. The first charge is for the shooting of the critically injured bystander.
The gunfire erupted outside Pounders Bar and Grill, whose owner is now thinking about changing the type of music he plays inside his bar, a popular place to dance.
The owner, Andrew Boe, who was bartending the night of the shooting, says his bar isn’t a magnet for such troublemakers. He and his mother have owned the bar for about seven years.
“That would hold water if we had those problems every Saturday night,” Boe said. “We just don’t have that.”
Before the shooting, Boe said he refused to allow one of the men inside his bar who was later involved in the exchange of gunfire.
The shooting happened at about 1:30 a.m. Saturday outside the bar at 221 Main Ave. S.
The two Des Moines men, Vannak Rann and Johnny Rourn – who are brothers in law and live together – were booked into the county jail in Kent on $200,000 bail each.
The two initially appeared Monday in court at the Norm Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent. Arraignment is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 23, at the justice center.
Rann has posted bail, while Rourn remains in jail at the justice center in Kent, according to county jail records.
The critically injured man was shot several times to the legs; a tourniquet kept him from bleeding to death, according to a court document. His condition at Harborview Medical Center was upgraded to satisfactory.
Three other shooting victims also were hospitalized; their conditions weren’t available.
Renton Police investigators found 40 9 mm shell casings in the roadway and sidewalk area in front of Pounders. They determined the bullets were fired by three guns. One handgun was recovered.
A Renton Police officer heard loud arguing outside Pounders Bar as he drove by at about 1:30 a.m. When he looked back at the area, he heard the sounds of rapid-fire gunshots.
Boe described to police what led up to the shooting.
Boe told officers two groups of patrons were at the bar, one primarily Samoan and one mostly darker-skinned Asians, according to a court document. They argued just inside the door, then walked outside.
Sensing trouble, Boe, joined by the bar’s bouncer, walked outside. The two groups were fighting in the middle of Main. As Boe and the bouncer tried to separate the two groups, at least three people, some from each group, pulled out handguns and started firing at each other, according to a court document.
Boe took cover behind a trash can. He saw an Asian male firing shots from the parking lot across Main from Pounders. Boe ran inside to call 911.
Another witness told investigators about seeing the 29-year-old Rann waiting on Main outside the bar with a woman. According to the witness, the woman with him asked Rann whether he still had “it,” and the suspect repeatedly told her, “Don’t worry about it. Don’t worry about it. I’m out of ammo. I’m going to get more.” The witness pointed out Rann to an officer as he disappeared around the corner.
Rann was about to leave in a GMC Yukon when he was stopped by a Renton officer. A cocked semi-automatic pistol was laying on the pavement where the Yukon had been parked.
Another witness identified Rann as one of the shooters. The witness was a friend of the four victims, according to court documents.
Rourn, who is 27 years old, was tracked by a K9 unit to the Cedar River near Interstate 405 after he had fled the scene.
Rourn denied that he was in the bar that night, according to the court document. He claimed he had just walked to the Maple Valley Highway from his girlfriend’s house in the Highlands. But, despite the rainstorm overnight, he was dry. Officers found cocaine and a single loaded 9 mm round in his pocket after he was arrested.
According to the court document, the suspect admitted to generally carrying a 9 mm handgun. One of the bar’s employees recognized the suspect as being in the bar but couldn’t positively identity him as one of the shooters, according to the court document.
Renton Police Chief Kevin Milosevich said part of the investigation will determine what role, if any, the bar played in the shooting. It’s possible police could contact the Washington state Liquor Control Board, which issues liquor licenses.
The Police Department is working with all taverns and bars downtown on a number of issues, Milosevich said.
Pounders was cited by the liquor control board for serving alcohol to a minor on May 22, the only violation in two years. It must pay a $300 fine by Monday.
The violation occurred during a sting throughout Renton, Boe said. He said an employee made a mistake.
Prior to that, a complaint was filed about under-age service, but an actual violation didn’t occur.
A 19-year-old man was shot and killed and another man wounded in a shooting outside Pounders at about 2 a.m. on Nov. 5, 2006. William Adam Gray was charged with second-degree murder in that case. He was also charged with first-degree assault.
Gray wasn’t allowed inside the bar that night, Boe said in an interview.
Boe described in an interview aggressive groups of bar-goers who are “looking for a place to land.” It’s those types of groups, he said, that he “hates.”
“They are not going to put down roots here,” he said.
Since the shooting, he has been thinking about what he can do to attract an “upscale” crowd.
One is to soften the dance music, which would include some “bubblegum” tunes. Right now, he features dance rock, RB and some country. He plans to focus more on sports and has just changed his menu.
“We are going to do our best to upscale the crowd,” he said.
