SPOKANE, Wash. — Spokane police arrested a suspect Monday night in connection to the Saturday morning fatal shooting in downtown Spokane on West Riverside Ave.
The shooting was just one out of three that happened last Friday night and into Saturday morning, as police also responded to a drive-by and three men firing guns near an apartment complex.
Diandre R. Johnson was taken into police custody as he was exiting a store last Monday night. The 24-year-old was armed with a gun at the time of the arrest. Johnson does have a criminal record, as he was out on bail for a first-degree assault charge in April of 2020. Johnson is expected to make his first court appearance Tuesday afternoon. He was booked into the Spokane County Jail around 9:30 p.m. Monday.
Johnson's bond is set at $1 million.
According to a press release from the Spokane Police Department (SPD), the fatal shooting in downtown Spokane occurred at 12:14 a.m. Saturday. Two SPD officers were working downtown when they heard gunfire less than a block away. It was not too long before the officers found a man, Stevie Cavitt, on the ground with multiple gunshot wounds. Over 30 SPD units were called in to secure the crime scene and control the crowd that formed around the incident.
Cavitt was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
According to court documents, a witness said he saw Johnson carrying a gun in his sweatshirt. Johnson then got into a fight with Cavitt, where he put his hands in the victim's face. Cavitt pushed Johnson's hand away, then that's when Johnson took out his gun and shot Cavitt multiple times.
After being arrested, Johnson was booked into the Spokane County Jail on a second-degree murder charge.
At the time of the shooting, Johnson was out on bail for first-degree assault. That incident happened in April 2020, according to court documents. He was also convicted of attempted first-degree robbery on February 9, 2016.
SPD Major Crimes Unit thanked those who came forward with additional information on the shooting.
This is an developing story and we will provide more updates as soon as we receive them.