An innocent bystander was shot in the leg near Seattle Center on Saturday night, police said Sunday, after a man fired at another man who had hit him in the head with a skateboard.

The man's gunshot wound was not life-threatening.

A suspect, caught by police after running to Center House during the Northwest Folklife Festival, was booked into King County Jail for investigation of assault. Police said he told them he is from the Kent area.

Police said both he and the man who assaulted him with the skateboard are both gang members.

The shooting, which occurred as crowds were enjoying festival music on the Center grounds, was the latest of three high-profile incidents in which innocent bystanders were killed or wounded.

On Thursday, Justin Ferrari was shot and killed, as he drove with his family on errands in the Central Area.

Nicole Westbrook, a 21-year-old culinary student walking near her apartment, died after being struck as shots were fired from a moving car in Pioneer Square.

The Seattle Center shooting, which occurred about 7 p.m., preceded hours of unusual gun violence in the city.

A flurry of four drive-by shootings rocked South Seattle early Sunday. Police said more than 60 bullets were fired at four houses. No one was injured. The Seattle police gang unit is investigating at least two of the shootings.

Inside a North Seattle home, an intruder shot a man in the chest about 2 a.m. and ran off. Police said the homeowner, who had a marijuana-growing operation in the house, confronted the intruder in an apparent robbery attempt.

The homeowner's injuries were life-threatening, according to police.

Police on Sunday released more details about the Seattle Center incident.

The shooter, police said, was on the sidewalk just south of the Space Needle valet parking turnaround when another man walked up and said, "You from Yaks?" Police said the shooter said he thought the stranger was asking if he was from Yakima.

Police said the shooter told them he walked away and the man hit him in the head with a skateboard. The shooter pulled out a .22 caliber revolver, according to police, and shot in the direction of the man.

The bystander was struck in the right calf as he waited to cross Broad Street, police said. He was treated at Harborview Medical Center and released.

Renee Witt, spokeswoman for Seattle police, said she did not have details on the victim's identity.

After the shooting, the gunman fled, running through crowds of startled people. Officers caught up with him after he ran into the Center House, and police said they recovered a gun.

Witnesses on Saturday night said they heard five or six gunshots and then saw a man with a gun running into the Seattle Center grounds.

Police say they are still searching for suspects in the fatal shootings of Ferrari, a Madrona father of two; and Westbrook, who had just moved to Seattle.

Ferrari was the city's 15th homicide victim this year.

Speaking to the media Saturday night across the street from Seattle Center, Metz said police are stepping up emphasis patrols in areas that have been hit by violence. He said Folklife is traditionally "an easygoing" event and police don't believe the shooting was related to the music festival.

Metz said a number of officers were on patrol at Seattle Center because of the large crowds expected for the event, which typically kicks off summer in the Northwest.

He said an officer was near the scene of the shooting and chased the suspected gunman. He didn't give details about how the suspect was captured, but called the combination of a gunman with a visible weapon and the "hundreds and hundreds of people" on the Center grounds "a very scary endeavor."

Metz said the Police Department's gang unit has taken over the investigation.

Patrick Sage, of Issaquah, said he was about 20 feet away from the shooting when he heard the gunshots and saw a man running toward crowds of people on the Center grounds.

"I saw a small gun in his hand. His face was bloody. I started yelling at people to run ... away. It was really terrifying," said Sage, less than an hour after the shooting.

"There's kids around, a lot of friendly people trying to be in peace, and you've got a guy with a gun," he said, shaking.

Alberto Alvarez and a friend had been at Folklife since about 3 p.m. and were about to leave when they heard the gunshots about 30 feet away and bullets whizzing through the air.

Alvarez said he saw the gunman and then the victim lying on the ground. They saw blood, but said the victim was conscious and talking on a cellphone.

"I said to my friend we better get out of here," Alvarez said. "It really ruins the experience of Folklife."

This is the second shooting in recent years at or near the festival. In 2008, a 22-year-old Snohomish man got into a fight at the festival. A gun he was carrying in an ankle holster discharged during the scuffle. The bullet grazed one man's nose, then struck another man in the hand and a woman in the leg.

Following the shooting, then-Mayor Greg Nickels vowed to outlaw guns in city buildings, parks and beaches "frequented by children." But the ban was struck down by a King County Superior Court judge and again in 2011 by the state Court of Appeals.

In March, the state Supreme Court declined to hear the matter.

Lynn Thompson:

206-464-8305 or lthompson@seattletimes.com. On Twitter @lthompsontimes.