Deceased Navy Yard Suspect Arrested In Seattle In 2004

The man law enforcement have identified as the deceased gunman who opened fire at the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. Monday was arrested in Seattle in May of 2004 for shooting up a car.

According to police reports, Aaron Alexis was living with his grandmother in Seattle’s Beacon Hill neighborhood that year. A construction crew was building a house next door, and one of the workers told police that Alexis stared at them every morning for a month leading up to the incident.

The man says that one day Alexis came outside of the house and walked over to one of their cars, a 1986 Honda Accord, legally parked at the site. Then, according to the report, Alexis shot out two tires and fired a shot into the air. He didn’t exchange a word with the workers before he walked back inside his grandmother’s house.

Later, police say Alexis admitted he shot at the car, and he said he didn’t remember pulling the trigger until an hour after the incident. Alexis described the shooting as a "blackout" fueled by anger.

According to the report, Alexis’ father told police that his son was involved in rescues during the September 11th terrorist attacks, and he believed his son suffered from PTSD related to that.

A few weeks after the incident, Alexis was booked for malicious mischief.