Police sources tell us the victim in yesterday's shooting in downtown Seattle may have been targeted for "assassination" in dispute over drug dealing territory.

Around 4:45pm last night, the suspect in the shooting walked up to a 31-year-old man on 2nd and Pike, pulled out a gun and shot him in the head at close range. The victim died at Harborview a short time later.

The area where the 31-year-old victim was shot, at 2nd and Pike, is well-known as a hot spot for drug dealers and buyers.

Both the 27-year-old suspected shooter--identified by police sources at Tomas Afeworki--and the victim have drug charges on their records. 

According to court and jail records, victim in the shooting was arrested in May after West Precinct Anti-Crime Team officers spotted him selling crack to a woman on the street in Belltown.

Both Afeworki and the victim appear to have gang connections, and two sources tell us that the victim was affiliated with the East African Posse gang. Another source says the shooter may be connected with the Latin Kingz. Police sources referred to both men as "frequent fliers," meaning they both have significant criminal history.

Afeworki was released from prison last September after he was convicted in a home invasion in Everett. He also has prior charges for burglary, drug and weapons possession, and assault.

The victim also has a long rap sheet "spanning the majority of [his] lifetime," court records say, dating back to when he was juvenile. "As an adult, the defendant picked up where he left off, compiling felony convictions for theft...malicious mischief and [drug possession]" prosecutors wrote in court records earlier this year. Records also indicate the man was charged with two counts of rape in 2005, which was later reduced to an assault charge.

Seattle police would not confirm the motive behind the shooting.

Afeworki is being held at the King County Jail on $2.5 million bail.