Retired NBA star Shawn Kemp may not have been the only gunman in a mall parking lot in Tacoma, Wash., on Wednesday, where he was arrested for alleged shooting from the car. Officers were actually responding to a report of “two suspects firing shots at each other,” according to dispatch audio obtained by TMZ.
The Seattle SuperSonics legend, 53, was booked by police at 5:58 p.m. Pacific Time (8:58 p.m. EST) Wednesday, just hours after he was involved in an alleged out-of-car shooting that involved two cars involved in a shopping mall parking lot .
Fox 13 reported in the early hours of Thursday morning that Kemp “had property stolen from his car on Tuesday and his iPhone was tracked to Tacoma on Wednesday.”
Now, TMZ reports that there were two shooters, although it’s unclear who fired first. It is alleged that the basketball legend confronted the suspect, who then shot Kemp and shot Kemp back in self-defense.
A police report Wednesday revealed shots were fired in a parking lot near the 4500 block of South Steele Street, near the Courtesy Tire store. According to the police report, four shots were heard and a revolver was found outside of a Firestone Complete Auto Care. Video released by TMZ shows a man who appears to be Kemp throwing something out of his driver’s side window before his arrest.
Shawn Kemp clown out here. First he shot someone and then tried to tell the police, “He went this way, officer.” They didn’t buy it. pic.twitter.com/axQTukaTFA
— Darkskin D (@DDarkskinned) March 9, 2023
Shawn Kemp, above in 2021, was arrested in connection with a drive-by shooting on Wednesday
Pierce County Corrections’ website shows Kemp’s booking at 5:58 p.m. Wednesday
A legendary six-time NBA All-Star, Kemp played for the Seattle Supersonics for eight years
Police said no one was injured in the shooting, but that Kemp – originally identified as a 53-year-old man and later named in the report – was held at the scene.
Drive-by shooting is a Class B felony under Washington state law and carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $20,000.
The incident happened just before 2 p.m. and a gun was found in the parking lot. As of Wednesday night, Kemp was still being held in the county jail.
Kemp was previously arrested in Shoreline in 2005 on a drug possession investigation, where he and another man were found with a small amount of cocaine, 60 grams of marijuana and a semi-automatic pistol.
A year later, he was arrested for possession of marijuana in Texas.
In his post-gaming career, he has been involved in a number of business ventures, most notably opening a cannabis dispensary in 2020.
He also owned a sports bar in Lower Queen Anne, Seattle called Oskar’s Kitchen, but the facility closed in 2015. It is reported that he is still a partner in another restaurant in town.
A Google Street View image shows the parking lot where the alleged drive-by happened
Kemp, who wears 40, watches a 1996 NBA game at Arco Arena in Sacramento, California
Kemp was drafted in the first round of the 1989 NBA Draft by the Seattle SuperSonics, who became the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2008.
He played for the team for nine years and was an NBA All-Star for the last five years.
In 1997, he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he played three seasons and earned a sixth All-Star award.
At the end of his career he played for the Portland Trail Blazers and Orlando Magic, where he left in 2003.
Since his playing career, he has been actively involved in attempts to bring an NBA franchise back to Seattle after it lost its SuperSonics in 2008.
In 2022, Kemp told the Athletic he won’t quit until the city “gets the actual Sonics back.”
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/nba/article-11840995/Shawn-Kemp-one-TWO-SHOOTERS-mall-parking-lot-according-police.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490 According to police, Shawn Kemp was one of TWO GUARDIANS in a mall parking lot
