Police said the suspect was arrested after a vehicle chase that ended back at the scene.
LONGVIEW, Wash. — Two people were shot and killed late Saturday outside an event hall in Longview, and a 49-year-old Kelso man was arrested after a chase through the city that ended back at the parking lot where the shooting began, police said.
Longview police said the gunfire broke out at about 10:45 p.m. outside the AWPPW Hall in the 700 block of 15th Avenue. Officers arriving at the scene found two victims with gunshot wounds and saw a suspect vehicle leaving the area. The deaths and the quick arrest turned the case into a double-homicide investigation within hours, but police said Sunday that they were not releasing additional details about a motive, the relationship between the suspect and the victims, or what led to the shooting.
According to police, about 200 people were inside the hall when the shooting happened in the parking lot. Officers said they began pursuing the suspect vehicle after spotting it leaving the scene. The chase moved into West Longview before circling back toward the event hall. During the pursuit, police said, the suspect threw a semiautomatic handgun from the vehicle window. Officers later recovered the weapon.
Police identified the suspect as Andres Carrasco-Sanchez, 49, of Kelso. Investigators said he returned to the AWPPW Hall parking lot, got out of the vehicle and tried to run, but officers captured him after a short foot pursuit. He was booked into jail on two counts of first-degree murder. Police have not publicly identified the two people who were killed, and no court filing released Sunday offered a fuller account of what investigators believe happened in the minutes before the shots were fired.
The shooting happened outside a gathering at a hall that local residents described as a familiar community venue. A woman who was helping unload decorations told local television reporters the event inside was a quinceañera. That detail added to the shock surrounding the shooting, because police said dozens of families and guests were inside the building at the time. Even so, authorities have not said whether anyone inside the event witnessed the gunfire directly or whether anyone else was hurt while people reacted to the shots.
Neighbors said the police response was immediate and overwhelming. Cathy Gruchacz, who lives nearby, said she looked out and saw “a whole line of cars right across the street.” Another resident, Robert Phillips, said it felt as though “every cop in town showed up right there.” Their accounts matched the broad outline released by police, who said officers were already in the area and were able to spot the suspect’s vehicle soon after the shooting.
As of Sunday, the case remained under investigation. Police said no further information would be released for the time being, leaving several central questions unanswered, including why the victims were targeted, whether the shooting was planned and what evidence investigators recovered beyond the handgun. The next major developments are likely to come through court proceedings, charging documents and any later public identification of the victims.
The suspect was in custody Sunday on two murder counts, while investigators continued piecing together what happened outside the hall. Authorities had not announced a hearing date or released more details by late Sunday.
Author note: Last updated April 13, 2026.