Auburn Police say ‘wrong man’ was involved in shooting case | Update

Published 10:21 am Friday, July 31, 2026

Auburn Police say a Des Moines man tracked down by the use of Flock cameras was involved in a recent shooting.

An earlier story by the Auburn Reporter noted a wrong man was arrested after a spokesperson for the Auburn Police said the man had “no involvement” in a 3 a.m. July 28 shooting from one vehicle at another near the intersection of Sixth Street SE and Auburn Way South.

“It was a mistake on my end,” spokesperson Kolby Crossley said during a July 31 phone interview. “It was a miscommunication between me and the person I got the information from.”

Crossley declined to say exactly how the Des Moines man in his 40s was involved.

“We can’t say at the moment,” Crossley said. “It’s still under investigation.”

Somehow, however, he reportedly was involved and had information for police.

“I’ve now learned that through further investigation, that the person in Des Moines was involved in the incident, he was brought to the station, was interviewed and later released back to his residence,” Crossley said in a July 31 email. “Based on information obtained during that interview, a different subject in Auburn was subsequently arrested for felony harassment.”

Crossley said the use of (Flock) ALPR technology led to a quick resolution and played a critical role in identifying the suspect vehicle and led directly to an arrest in the case.

Auburn Police credited the use of Flock cameras, which capture license plates of vehicles, in a July 28 Facebook news release for initially leading to the arrest of a Des Moines man for reportedly firing shots at another vehicle during the July 28 incident.

The Flock camera incident occurred just a week after more than a dozen Auburn residents told the City Council they were enraged at the implementation of the 37 cameras across the city. Residents said the cameras make them feel uncomfortable and surveilled.

The cameras capture the license plate, along with attributes like make, model, color, and other visible characteristics, according to Flock, which is based in Atlanta, Georgia.

As for the shooting, a dispute reportedly broke out between two vehicles and led to a shooting from one of the vehicles before both fled the scene, according to police. Additionally, a gunshot victim was treated later at MultiCare Auburn Medical Center and was reportedly linked to the case.

Editor Steve Hunter contributed to this article.

This article has been updated from an earlier version.