GEORGE, Wash. — The man deputies believe was planning to carry out a mass shooting at a music festival appeared in court for the first time on Monday morning.
30-year-old Jonathan Moody was arrested outside of the Gorge Amphitheater in George on Friday night after deputies found two loaded 9 mm pistols on him. He was booked into the Grant County Jail on suspicion of one count of possession of a dangerous weapon and one count of unlawful carrying or handling of a weapon.
Grant County Sheriff's deputies believe they prevented Moody from carrying out a mass shooting.
According to court documents, deputies were called to Gate B at the Gorge at approximately 9:30 p.m. on Friday. Event organizers told deputies they didn't know what was happening but that deputies were needed immediately.
When deputies arrived, security guards informed them that a man reported seeing another man walking around with firearms. The witness told deputies that he and his friends saw a "suspicious male," later identified as Moody, walking around the campground. The witness said he then saw Moody open the trunk to a gray Kia car, fill a balloon with an "unknown substance" and begin to inhale the air from the balloon.
According to the witness, Moody then grabbed two pistols from the vehicle and loaded them. He then put one of the guns on his rear waistband and the other on his left hip.
The witness said he and his friends became very concerned after seeing this and began walking away from the area. As they were leaving, the witness told deputies Moody approached him and asked him what time the concert would be over. The witness told Moody the concert ended at 1 a.m., then immediately looked for a security guard to tell them what happened.
Another witness described Moody as "not in the right mindset" to deputies.
As the witnesses were giving their statement to deputies, two security guards called out to them and said Moody was detained. Responding deputies ran over to where Moody was detained and removed the weapons he had on him, according to documents.
Moody was carrying a Sig Sauer P20 chambered in 9mm and a Springfield XD chambered in 9mm. Deputies said both guns were loaded with one round in the chamber. It was later discovered that Moody does not have a valid concealed weapons permit.
Moody was arrested for Felony Harassment- Threats to Kill, but the charge was later changed to Possession of Weapons Apparently Capable of Producing Bodily Harm and Dangerous Weapons. He was booked into the Grant County Jail and appeared in court Monday morning.
In a Facebook post, the sheriff's office noted that Friday night's concert series, Bass Canyon, was sold out, meaning there were upwards of 25,000 people attending. Deputies said Moody's possession of weapons, inhaling of a toxicant and questions to concertgoers raised enough suspicion to warrant his arrest.
KREM 2 spoke exclusively with Destini Coughlan, who attended Bass Canyon over the weekend. She said that although she is grateful nobody was injured, the thought of someone potentially planning a shooting is daunting.
"It seems so out of the way for somebody to go do something like that. It just seemed very vengeful for some odd reason," she said. "It definitely wasn't a safe feeling, but it makes me feel safe knowing that there were the 25,000 people there, that there were a lot of people seeing that and reporting it instantly, and knowing there were so many security there."
Kyle Foreman, the Grant County Sheriff's Office Public Information Officer, said the witnesses who told security about Moody did exactly the right thing.
"What the concert-goers did by seeing something that was out of place and knowing that this person was suspicious based on their behavior, they did absolutely the right thing by notifying security so we could make contact with him and find out what his reason for being there was," Foreman said.
He reiterated the importance of guests saying something if they notice something peculiar.
The sheriff's office is currently serving a search warrant on two vehicles that are associated with Moody and there is currently no indication that anyone else was involved in the potential incident, according to Foreman.
For future concertgoers, Foreman said the sheriff's office and the Gorge evaluates the crowd for every event to make sure there will be adequate security.
"We'll certainly take this into account and use it as a teaching moment, as well as preparation moment for future plans," he said.
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