When a gunman opened fire on women at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle last Friday, he announced the shootings were intended to make a statement. Prosecutors who charged Naveed Afzal Haq on Wednesday say he did: Hate.Haq, 30, was charged with nine felonies, including aggravated first-degree murder, five counts of attempted murder, kidnapping, burglary and malicious harassment, the state's hate-crime law. "Make no mistake, this was a hate crime," King County Prosecutor Norm Maleng said Wednesday as he announced the charges during a news conference.
The charges provide chilling details of the shooting spree in which one woman was killed and five others were wounded. Prosecutors allege that Haq shot Pamela Waechter in the chest and then followed the wounded woman as she fled up some stairs. At the top, Haq allegedly reached over the railing and shot her again, killing her.