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Seattle's police chief now refers to gangs as 'small groups' in the wake of a mass shooting in the city that killed three.

Shon Barnes repeatedly used the term during a press conference Monday, hours after Sunday's massacre at the Bite of Seattle food festival that is believed to have been gang related.

He told a press conference that a motive remains under investigation but that it was 'certainly group activity.'

Seemingly referring to gangs, the police chief added: 'We have small groups that appear to be at odds with each other.'

'In our city, 0.01% of the population is connected to 52 percent of our shootings, most of which are young people,' Barnes said.

A 15-year-old suspect is in custody over the shootings, while a second suspect, 19-year-old Junior Cee Niko Semo, was killed. One other suspect is at large.

Meanwhile, the city's woke mayor Katie Wilson has come under fire for her response to the killings.

The shooting unfolded at 6pm local time, but when Wilson's office issued a statement almost three hours later, it included incorrect information. The first press conference was then delayed twice, leaving concerned citizens in limbo waiting for answers.

At a second press conference on Monday, Wilson appeared to lose her temper at a reporter questioning the delays, snapping back: 'This speaks to the tension between providing information early and providing it accurately.'

Seattle mayor Katie Wilson has come under scrutiny for her response to a horror mass shooting in her city on Sunday that killed three people and injured at least four others

Authorities believe the shooting was perpetrated by at least three young people at the food festival, with one of the deceased, a 19-year-old, believed to be one of the shooters

Wilson continued at the press conference: 'There’s a tension here between providing information quickly and providing information accurately, right?

'So if we had been reporting up to the minute everything that we were hearing in the swirl that happened last night, there would have been a lot of inaccuracies out there that would have confused people and that we then would have had to correct.

'So we are managing this tension, and we are doing the best that we can to provide accurate information in a timely manner without increasing confusion.'

Frustrations surrounding the response to the shooting also saw Barnes square up to a reporter when he was questioned about not being in Seattle to handle the tragedy on Sunday evening.

Barnes was attending the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Officers Conference in Dallas, Texas at the time, because two of his Seattle police officers were being honored.

The police chief admitted to not being in the city, saying: 'I wish that I had a crystal ball and we could schedule gun violence, but we can’t.

But when South Seattle Emerald reporter Connor Nash followed up, Barnes was seen in a video posted on X by independent reporter Jonathan Choe erupting at the journalist.

Frustrations surrounding the response to the shooting also saw Seattle Police Chief Shon Barnes square up to a reporter when he was questioned about not being in Seattle to handle the tragedy on Sunday evening

Mourners seen after the horror shooting in Seattle on Sunday

'Let me tell you something. I don’t have to tell you where I go. I had a medical procedure on Friday.'

'I have been here working as hard as I can for this city, from the day I got here. You got that?' Barnes lashed.

Nash then responded: 'But there are reports that you're not in town often,' to which the chief said: 'The reports are wrong, do you understand?'

As the reporter attempted a follow-up, a staff member intervened, repeatedly urging Barnes, 'Let's go,' as he ushered the chief away.

Authorities have identified the victims of Sunday's shooting as Semo, 19 - who is believed to have been one of the shooters - and bystanders Carlos Israel Sanchez Villalba, 44, Ashley Whitehead, 56.

At least four others were injured in the shooting.

Seattle shooting victim Ashley Whitehead, 56, is one of three people killed in the July 26, 2026, mass shooting at the Bite of Seattle food festival

Carlos Israel Sanchez Villalba, 44, was fatally shot at the food festival in Seattle on Sunday

Carlos Villalba, a beloved father of three, was shot in the torso and died on the scene.

Whitehead, a devoted mother to two daughters, was struck in the pelvis and later died at the hospital, a GoFundMe fundraiser stated.

The mom was 'waiting in line for cotton candy, enjoying the festival with her daughter, Zoie, and future son-in-law, Ben, when the violence began,' the GoFundMe for Whitehead's family reads.

'She was shot and, despite surviving long enough to exchange heartfelt "I love yous" with her eldest daughter, passed away during surgery at Harborview.'

Villalba, who was described as 'one of the best people on the planet,' was spending time with loved ones when he tragically lost his life at the food festival, according to a GoFundMe created for his family.

The Daily Mail has contacted Wilson's office for comment.