Dramatic video footage near Seattle’s Space Needle shows an elderly man putting his safety aside to march right up to the knifeman and squirt his face with pepper spray, to try and get him to drop his weapon.
The knifeman was suspected of murder after he was seen wielding a weapon, and covered in blood while walking in broad daylight among shoppers near the city's main attractions last Friday.
David Lee Morris, 29, has been accused of murdering Seattle woman Gabrielle Garcia, 28 – who had an active no-contact order – in front of their young son, reports Kiro 7.
Her estranged boyfriend allegedly stabbed her in front of scores of people.
Eric DeAngelo, a photographer and performance artist, told Kiro 7 that he was unaware of the woman’s death, but noticed Morris walking through the centre, with “both of hands bloody, so I started making a video.”
DeAngelo added: “He was just walking toward the man with the gun, I don’t know what his intention was.”
A man with a gun, Scott Brown, can be heard on the video telling the knifeman to drop his weapon.
He can be heard saying to Morris: “Come on brother, put it down man. God loves you man, Jesus Christ put his life on the line for you man.
"Put it down brother, put it down, it’s not worth it.”
Someone can be heard – possibly a security guard, also telling him to put down the knife.
However, Morris continues walking towards the armed man, with his arms outstretched, forcing him to walk backwards, through the shopping precinct.
An older man passing by, alerted by calls for the knifeman to freeze, can be heard asking someone for pepper spray.
He then bravely goes up behind him, and sprays him in the face despite the knife being present in the accused murderer's right hand.
Morris can be seen wiping spray from his face, as he turns a couple of times, and begins walking towards a grassed area, with Brown still holding out his gun, aiming it towards him.
Finally, police sirens can be heard on the video, and two cop cars pull up on the green space.
One officer tasers and then arrests him.
Kiro 7 reported that on Saturday, a judge at King County District Court found probable cause to hold Morris for investigation of first degree murder. Neither the deputy prosecutor nor his public defender discussed bail.
According to the probable cause document, Morris told detectives that in relation to his “off and on” relationship with Garcia, he had considered killing her in April or May, but decided instead to try and “rehabilitate their relationship”.
They agreed to meet last Friday at the Pacific Science Center, but he became angry, and she was fatally attacked.
The boy was uninjured.
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