By Chantal Da Silva and Josh Cradduck -
NBC News
Shawn Kemp, a former NBA star, was arrested and booked into a Washington state jail on Wednesday charged with felony drive-by shooting.
Officers responded to reports of gunfire in an altercation between the occupants of two vehicles in Tacoma shortly before 2 pm local time (5 pm ET), the Tacoma Police Department said in a statement.
One of the drivers had shot the occupants of the other vehicle several times before the “victim vehicle” fled the area.
[Five injured in a “tragically ironic” shooting in Los Angeles, near a gun buyback act]
They said the suspect, who they identified only as a 53-year-old man, was taken into custody without incident and booked into a local jail.
A firearm was recovered from the scene.
The suspect, named Shawn Travis Kemp, was booked into the Pierce County Jail shortly before 6 p.m. local time (9 p.m. Eastern European time) charged with felony drive-by shooting, according to county records.
Seattle-based NBC affiliate KING-TV identified the suspect as a six-time NBA All-Star, citing the Pierce County Sheriff's Department.
Shawn Kemp in 1995 during his time with the Seattle SuperSonics. Rocky Widner / NBAE via Getty Images file
The Pierce County Sheriff's Department did not immediately respond to an overnight request for comment.
A spokesman for the Tacoma Police Department declined to provide further information about the arrest.
Records suggest there is only one resident by the name of Shawn Travis Kemp, 53, in the United States.
Kemp is a former star player for the Seattle SuperSonics, now the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The team selected him number 17 in the 1989 NBA Draft and he played 14 seasons in the league.
Kemp also played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Portland Trail Blazers, and Orlando Magic.
The former NBA star now runs at least one cannabis shop in Seattle.