“These are not long term solutions to end homelessness, but temporary locations that can be managed to provide a safer environment for those living on the streets and have less impact on our neighborhoods,” the mayor’s news release read.

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But just days after Murray’s plan was announced, “the Jungle” encampment was rocked by a multiple shooting Jan. 26. Three people were wounded; two more, James Quoc Tran, 33, and Jeannine L. Zapata, 45, were killed. At first, witness accounts evoked images of terrorist attacks — one said at least six people dressed in black riding bikes arrived at the encampment before the attack, and police moved to check other encampments in the region.

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And now, police say they’ve found the very young culprits: three boys ages 17, 16 and 13.

“It’s always shocking when young people are involved,” Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole said, as MyNorthwest reported. “I was shocked when I heard all the ages. But it is a horrific crime and people have to be brought to justice.”

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Police withheld the names of the teenagers, according to MyNorthwest. No other alleged culprits are being sought. O’Toole said that the attack was related to drug-dealing, and that the encampment was not targeted because homeless people live there.

“I certainly don’t think it was random,” she said. “I think the parties knew each other prior to this event. … This was not a random attack.”

The teenage suspects are of Pacific Islander descent. An unnamed witness told the Seattle Times that “Samoan men wearing masks and leather” were behind the shooting, which was about drugs and money. The witness said one of the shooters also pointed a gun at him and threatened him.

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“You got a [expletive] problem?” the men said, according to that account. The witness replied: “No, I’m just an old man sitting by the fire and trying to get warm.”

In a tough moment for any politician, the mayor was told of the shooting last week at the homeless encampment just after delivering a speech about his efforts to combat Seattle’s intractable problem with homelessness. The city has a much larger homeless population than others of comparable size. After the shooting, Murray and volunteers, and the Seattle Times editorial board, found more than 4,500 people “unsheltered” in King County — a 19 percent increase since 2015.

“We are involved in a homeless crisis, the likes that we have not seen since the Great Depression,” the mayor said at the site of the shootings on Jan. 26.

Murray also wondered whether he had waited too long to do something about a problem he has likened to Europe’s refugee crisis — one more likely to affect people of color, including Pacific Islanders.

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“You can’t help but wonder — I can’t help but wonder — did I act too late?” Murray said. “That’s my reaction. Maybe I should have issued the state of emergency months earlier. We have tried to do the best we can given the circumstances we have, but obviously I’m going to question, was I good enough at my job? It’s on me at the end.” He added that “the Jungle” encampment has been “unmanageable and out of control” for almost 20 years.

After the arrests Monday, the mayor praised the investigation into the shooting.

“This violent crime shocked Seattle,” he said in a statement. “Thank you to the team at the Seattle Police Department for your professionalism in pursuit of this investigation, resulting in these three arrests. … Our homicide investigators worked tirelessly to pursue leads and track down these suspects. We are also grateful for the efforts of our partners from federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.”

Thuy Nguyen, girlfriend of victim James Quoc Tran, told the Seattle Times that her boyfriend was an out-of-work manicurist with a drug and alcohol problem trying to get back on track.